Sigma House: Year One
by Sam-Cooke
Summary: Tenchi Masaki is off to college!  But things turn out to be more than they seem when he and his slacker friend are challenged with the task of protecting Earth from invaders who seek to possess a mystical object which once enslaved the universe.
1. Chapter 1

_Author's Note: The characters and cannon of Tenchi Muyo belong to Masaki Kajishima. I claim no ownership to the creation or development of their signature mannerisms. Please don't sue me. _

_To Tenchi Fans:_ _While the girls don't play much of a role in this first chapter, they do play an indispensable part to the rest of the chapters, so please don't be discouraged. _

_Continuity:_ _The story doesn't take place in any particular Tenchi cannon, but mostly takes its cues from the original Tenchi Muyo OVA (first two series), with a little Tenchi Universe sprinkled in. The only major deviations from the original OVA series are: Kiyone is in it (seriously, FUCK Noike), Tenchi's father and grandmother were humans and Ryoko's backstory has slightly changed. She's was still created by Washu and used as a marionette by Kagato, but became sentient after the attack on Jurai and worked as a freelance space pirate (like in Universe) before she was sealed up on Earth by Yosho. This may appear to host a series of plot holes, but if you really think it about it, the OVA (at least the third series) doesn't make a whole hell of a lot of sense either. Yosho, Nobuyuki and Achika (Kiyone) are supposedly hundreds of years old and have been living on Earth the whole time, yet they only managed to have the two children/grandchildren, despite Nobuyuki's more-than-apparent sexual prowess._

_My continuity states that after the attack on Jurai, Yosho spent those hundreds of years hunting Ryoko before eventually catching her and sealing her on Earth (I don't really explain this in the story because its hard to do so in casual conversation); not by accident, but in order to keep a vigilant eye on the threat stated in the summary. _

_To Japanese Interest Groups: I am completely aware of my cultural ignorance when it comes to modern Japanese society, so I have conceived this story as a sort of anime satire through the eyes of a westerner._

**Chapter One: Liberation**

This is our man, Keisuke Aomori. A short, chubby, eighteen year-old, overly abounded with body hair. His face holds a rather grim and angry expression, complimented by a callous unshaved face, large sideburns, and thick, but short unkempt brown hair. He is about to graduate high school with a C average.

Attending this graduation are his father; Hiro Aomori, the chief executive officer and owner of 'Aomori Enterprises', a large, very prominent exporter of Japanese goods. Mr. Aomori's company currently has a net worth of over six-billion yen. Also attending are his mother; Chizu Aomori, currently a journalist and part time actress, his sister Kai Aomori, the prodigal, straight A honor student of the two siblings; she is currently attending her second year at Fujiyo University. And then there are his grandparents; Jiro and Hisano Aomori. Jiro was the founder and owner of 'Aomori Enterprises' until he passed down full ownership to his son two years prior. His wife has been a homemaker all of her life and has recently developed a gambling problem.

The seniors stood outside of the school gym waiting for the _Pomp and Circumstance_ music to cue them for their entrance into the ceremony. The boys and girls each stood side by side in boy/girl, boy/girl fashion. Standing next to Keisuke was Maiya Chiba. Much like Keisuke's sister, she is a straight A honor student and the senior class valedictorian, as you could tell from the gold sash she wears over her graduation gown. She holds a thin and slender physique, her hair is long and brown, complemented by green eyes which are covered by large thin rimmed glasses. She does not like Keisuke.

Keisuke stood next to her with a devious grin upon his face, "So… sure are a lot of people in there, let's hope Miss Perfect doesn't choke during her speech."

Maiya gave a sarcastic chuckle in response, "The only thing I'm worried about is whether or not the stage is gonna collapse because of your fat-ass."

Keisuke struggled to come up with a suitable comeback, "Oh yeah… well… I just hope that the audience doesn't run out of the room because of your ugly face…"

Maiya kept herself cool and was confident that Keisuke would fail to come up with a competent retort to any of her insults, "Wow… that struck a nerve, did the fifth graders help you come up with that one?"

"Burn in hell, bitch!" Keisuke grunted.

_Pomp and Circumstance_ started up, Mr. Hairo, the ceremony's coordinator came up to the students, noticeably intrepid, "Okay, everybody… now remember, graduation is not for you, it's not for the school; it's for your mother, your father, and your grandparents. For the past four years, you students have collectively established yourselves as a kind, caring, and hardworking community… a family, if you will. So theoretically, every audience member out there is _your_ family, don't embarrass yourselves and you won't embarrass your family."

The school Principal entered the room, the students all bowed in respect. He walked over to Hairo, the two gave each other respective bows. "Let's go." The Principal said, as he took to the front of the line and lead the students into the auditorium.

The auditorium was full of student family members, standing in respect of the graduates. Keisuke and Maiya continued their relentless game of trying to psyche each other out through name-calling and faces made at one another, even after being in full view of the graduation audience. Keisuke's family, being very wealthy and prominently giving donations to the school, had seats reserved in the front row. His mother, Chizu, was seen tearing up at the event, "I can't believe my baby is actually graduating from school… they grow up so fast."

His sister, Kai, stood next to her mother with a doubting look upon her brow, "I can't believe it either, wonder how much he paid the teachers to pass him."

His Grandfather, Jiro, stood next to Kai, eyeing the graduates and examining the auditorium, "Seems like yesterday I was graduating from here, yup, this place hasn't changed a bit. Look, that's the exit where the bus was waiting to deploy the boys off to Iwo Jima. Ah, the memories. Say, I saw a few buses waiting outside, looks like our boy's gonna grow up to be a military man just like his ol' Grandad!"

"That's the bus taking the kids to Tokyo Disney, dear." said Hisano.

"Tokyo Disney? Ah, after all the money I donated to this school!" Jiro replied, enraged.

The graduates and the audience took their seats, the school Principal took the stand, preparing to give his speech to everybody. Meanwhile, Keisuke and Maiya were seated next to each other in the middle row, at the very end of the left side of the stacked bleachers. They continued their bickering under concealment of the Principal's speech. "I think I saw some notes drop out of your pocket on the march over here, Maiya, better hope it wasn't anything important for your speech." Keisuke whispered.

"I think I saw a cheeseburger fall out of your pocket, Keisuke, hope you don't get hungry mid-ceremony." Maiya replied, gracefully.

Keisuke, enraged, reached behind Maiya and pulled her hair. She let out a small shriek, then retorted by giving him a dead leg with her fist. "Ouch! You bitch!" Keisuke whispered, then gave her an Indian burn. The two continued to take physical shots at each other, seemingly unnoticed by the Principal or the audience.

Hairo, who was standing at the side of the bleachers noticed, though, and quickly acted to stop the ruckus, "Hey!" He yelled in a whispering tone, then drug his finger across his throat making a "death" signal. The two ceased their squabble immediately.

Keisuke and Maiya sat there pouting, unable to attack either of their opponents. Keisuke suddenly formed a devious grin upon his face as he looked at Maiya.

The Principal finished up his speech, "Now, in a few moments, we will have a word from one of our finest students; class valedictorian, Maiya Chiba!" The audience clapped in approval.

While this was going on, Keisuke reached into his graduation gown sleeve and pulled out a concealed Zippo lighter. He reached behind Maiya with it, and sparked it on her tassel, successfully lighting it ablaze before she got up to take the podium and recite her speech. As she walked down the steps of the bleachers, Hairo noticed the tassel aflame, shortening as it burned its way up to her hat. He was stricken with shock but unable to move, trying not to panic. As she continued to walk down to the podium, the students and members of the audience in the front row gasped as they noticed the flaming tassel, which soon became the flaming hat.

Maiya, proud of her honor, gracefully pushed forth and made it the podium to make her speech, she still hadn't noticed the problem at hand. She stood at the podium and began her speech, "Students and faculty…"

The audience began to erupt with chatter, Maiya was about ten seconds into her speech before she noticed the audience in distress and stopped, looking on in confusion. At this point, the smoke became visible to her eyes, the smell of the burning threads became noticeable to her nose, and finally, she felt a burning sensation atop her scalp. She looked up and knew right away the fire was coming from her, she screamed, then promptly removed the burning hat from her head and threw it onto the floor. The audience's chatter grew in volume, and Maiya, still in shock and embarrassment looked around the room. Her attention turned back to her section of the bleachers where Keisuke, along with some other boys sitting with him were bursting out with laughter. She began to see red, her eyes caught with Keisuke. She stood there for a few seconds, panting, sweating, and steaming with fury. She gave a swift, loud battle cry as she rushed the stands and jumped over the first three rows of graduates. Her hands locked on Keisuke's jugular, as she strangled him with powerful force, with the other students quickly dispersing away from the scene. Soon, all that was left on the stands were the sight of Maiya, strangling Keisuke, yelling furiously, "You!"

The school faculty quickly rushed to the scene to try and get Maiya off of Keisuke. It took twelve teachers and nine security guards to separate them. The audience stood, trying to get a better look at the spectacle. Keisuke's family remained sitting in their front seats, noticeably embarrassed, using their hands to shield the site of their faces from everyone else in the building.

_Meanwhile…_

Now we have our other man: Tenchi Masaki. You're probably already familiar with who he is, I mean, why would you be reading this otherwise? Just in case you're not, I'll give you a brief summary of who he is: Tenchi Masaki is basically the crowed prince of a powerful alien empire known as Jurai. He was born and raised on Earth, where he still decisively resides in the small village of Okayama. He lives in a shrine with his father Nobuyuki, grandfather Katsuhito aka Yosho (where he gets his Juraian ancestry from), and six lovely ladies who are all persistent in wanting to jump his bone. In recent days, his household has been thrust into turmoil (more than usual) over a recent problem that has come into prominence…

"College!" all the girls repeated in distress as Tenchi tried calmly to explain the situation to them kitchen.

"I'm afraid so, girls. Now, let's all be rational about this, Tenchi has worked very hard in school and it's a great honor that he be accepted into one of Japan's finest universities. Besides, we all knew this day would come, Tenchi's a man now, it's time he leave the nest and head for the bigger and better things." Nobuyuki explained to the girls in a calm and collective manner.

Ryoko, always being the least rational of the bunch, promptly grabbed Nobuyuki by his shirt collar, "What do you mean, better, old man! Are you saying none of us are good enough for Tenchi!" She screamed in his face.

Tenchi, trying to alleviate the situation put his voice of reason into the mix, "C'mon Ryoko, don't be ridiculous, you know I love all of you, but this is something I have to do. It's not like I'm gonna be gone for good, I'll come back and visit as much as possible, it's not like I can forget about you."

Ryoko dropped Nobuyuki from his shirt collar onto the floor, and rushed over to Tenchi, grasping onto him like a child to her mother, "But Teeenchiiiii!" With his space invaded, and air growing short due to Ryoko tightly hugging herself to him.

Tenchi became very nervous, as he usually does, "Ry-Ryoko, p-please."

As in normal household crisis fashion, Ayeka stepped up to the plate to get Ryoko under control. She pulled Ryoko off of Tenchi and took her to the side, "Ryoko, have some dignity. Now we can't expect to force Tenchi to stay by begging him like a bunch of harpies." With her and Ryoko off to the side, Ayeka stealthily took a butcher knife from a drawer and handed it to Ryoko, "Slash his tires." She whispered to Ryoko.

Ryoko nodded, and then hid the knife behind her back as she attempted to sneak to the back door unnoticed. As soon as she got there, Katsuhito opened the door behind her and grabbed the knife, "Hmm, what were you planning to do with this?"

Attention by everyone was drawn to Ryoko and the knife, everyone then looked back at Ayeka, who snickered nervously then quickly worked to pick herself back up, "Why Ryoko, I'm so disappointed in you!" Nobody believed her.

Katsuhito sighed, then took a seat in the kitchen. "Girls, I know you love Tenchi, none of us want to see him go, but you know what they say, if you love somebody, you let them go, if it was truly meant to be, they'll come back."

The girls stared at Katsuhito, blankly. His words clearly without merit in their eyes.

"Well, I think it's ridiculous, Tenchi's the Emperor of Jurai, what does he need an Earth education for?" Washu asked as she walked up to Tenchi, "Besides… If it's education Tenchi wants…" Washu, seemingly by magic, dawned a sexy Japanese school girl outfit and wrapped herself around Tenchi, "I am the greatest genius mind in the universe, I'll teach him everything he needs to know." She said in a sexy tone.

Ryoko and Ayeka became angry at Washu, pulling her off of him, "Hey! Get off of Tenchi, he's mine!" Said Ryoko.

"What do you mean yours, you skanky bitch!" Ayeka retorted. Soon, the three were grappled in a three-way rumble.

Tenchi took this time to make his escape, by slipping out of the kitchen and into his room. His room was covered in moving boxes, holding his clothes and other personal items. He continued to pack, trying to ignore the ruckus downstairs, sighing to himself. "I knew this was going to be nothing but trouble…" He finished packing and went to his laptop computer, still hooked up, he logged onto a messenger, where he began chatting with a contact he'd been getting to know for the past few weeks called Cunninlynguist69Sexfiend.

_Cunninlynguist69Sexfiend: Everything go well?_

_Tenchi01: Just like I thought it would._

_Cunninlynguist69Sexfiend: That bad, huh?_

_Tenchi01: Yeah, but I'm still going._

_Cunninlynguist69Sexfiend: Don't be pussywhipped._

_Tenchi01: lol_

_Cunninlynguist69Sexfiend: Two more weeks…_

_Tenchi01: Yup, you excited for college?_

_Cunninlynguist69Sexfiend: If by excited for college, you mean not being in high school anymore, then yes._

_Tenchi01: lol. I'm sure it'll be fun._

_Cunninlynguist69Sexfiend: Yeah, I just don't know why I'm going to college. I still don't know what I want to do with my life. But I suppose my parents are gonna make me anyway. Speaking of which, my parents said they wanted to talk to me; I'd better get down there. Later._

_Tenchi01: Later._

Keisuke, sitting in his room, logged off messenger and leaned back in his chair, sighing. "Fuck college." He muttered to himself.

He got up and left his room, passing by a framed newspaper headline reading: _Idiot Ruins Graduation Poster_, complimented by a photo of him being strangled by Maiya.

Downstairs, Keisuke's parents and grandparents were talking. "Pfft, college, the boy needs to go a Chinese sweatshop to learn some respect, if you ask me." Jiro said spitefully. "If this were the army, he'd have his head cut off!"

"Now, Father, Keisuke may be trouble, but he's a good kid at heart. He just needs love." Chizu said.

"Love! You and your westerner friends have putting that nonsense in your head again? The boy's had nothing but love, it's time for some ass-kicking, I say! It's not like he was raised on the streets, he has no reason to be acting up like he does." Jiro replied.

"Hey, Pop, we've done our fair share of disciplining, the boy just doesn't feel like he belongs, that's why he acts up." Hiro said.

Jiro scoffed, "Discipline... Face it; you two have been babying that boy since he was a baby, now you're sending him off to some hoity-toity college where he's going to continue to be babied by a bunch intellectual snobs who also have been influenced by your western friends. I'm telling you, just one call to the General, and in two years the boy will be as respectful as a British houseguest."

"Well, those days of babying are over, I tell you." Hiro replied.

Keisuke came downstairs from his room. "Well, speak of the Devil, and I mean that literally." Jiro said.

"You guys wanted to see me?" Keisuke asked.

"Yes, son, have a seat." Keisuke took a seat at one of the many chairs. The family's butler, Hibiki, came in with some champagne and served it to the adults. "Will you be needing me anymore tonight, sir?" Hibiki asked.

"No, Hibiki, you can go now." Hiro replied.

"Thank you, sir." Hibiki bowed, then left the dining room.

Hiro turned his attention back to his son, "Now, Son, the reason why we asked you here, tonight, is to discuss some things, mainly your behavior."

"Hey, I told you, she started it!" Keisuke said, defensively.

"Yes, well, we've all been talking about your behavior, and I've decided that it's time to finally do something about it."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, for some reason, Hanayama University has accepted you into their alumni. It's a great honor and privilege, and we're all very proud of you for it, and you _are _going."

"I don't see why I have to go to college anyway, I don't know what I want to do with my life, besides work for the company. Besides, you didn't go to college, neither did Grandpa."

"Yes, but times are different, things in the economy are looking as well as they did back then. You never know when the company could go under and with a college education, if that time comes you'll have something under your belt to help you along. You can't just go on expecting a free-ride through life; you need options in this day and age. Besides, even though I didn't go, I wish I had, maybe you'll go there and decide you don't want to work for the company, maybe you'll find something else that strikes your fancy. Either way, college is a great opportunity to discipline you and help you become a responsible adult. I'd say you need that dearly."

"Well, I guess if there's nothing I can do about it."

"Glad you understand son… oh yeah, and we're cutting you off."

Keisuke gave his father a confused look. "Huh?"

"No more free rides, you need to learn what it means to be an upstanding citizen in the real world."

"Yeah… but… uh… what the hell am I supposed to do?"

"We have a fund for your tuition, books, and to get yourself started with housing. But everything else... well, it's all you, son."

"Y-you mean… a job? Me?" Keisuke cried.

"That's right."

Keisuke ran to his father and grabbled at his dad's feet, "No, Dad! Not that! Anything but that!"

Keisuke was shown out the door by Hibiki who handed him a small duffle bag and a train ticket, "Just call us when you want us to ship more of your stuff. Good luck, Master Keisuke." He said as he shut the door in Keisuke's face.

Now, out on the street, Keisuke kicked the door in anger, "Son of a bitch!"

He stood at the door for a few seconds before lighting up a cigarette and making his way to the family's chauffeur who drove him to the train station.

While sitting in the back of the car, Keisuke tapped on the driver's shoulder, "Hey, I'll give you a hundred-thousand yen if I miss my train."

The driver promptly replied in a humored tone, "Sorry, Sir, but Master Hiro already gave me two-hundred thousand to not take any bribes from you."

Keisuke shot back into his seat, crossed his arms, and continued to pout.

Keisuke made his train and was on his way to the university. He sat looking miserably in his seat, he then reached into his pocket and grabbed his cell phone, which he used to mobile chat with Tenchi.

_Cunninlynguist69Sexfiend: Well, I guess I'm going._

_Tenchi01: So, your parents made you do it?_

_Cunninlynguist69Sexfiend: Yup, and they cut me off too, so now I have to get a job. Never had one before._

_Tenchi01: Wow, sorry to hear that. Oh well, at least you won't be alone, looking forward to meeting you._

_Cunninlynguist69Sexfiend: So, you think you'll be able to get out of there smoothly?_

_Tenchi01: Probably not, I'm leaving in the middle of the night to avoid any further drama._

_Cunninlynguist69Sexfiend: Well, I guess the next time we talk, it'll be in person. Later._

_Tenchi01: Later._

Tenchi was dressed for his journey to college. He only had a couple of bags which he had hanging over his shoulders. He packed up his laptop and headed for the door. He took only two steps out before tripping and falling, all his bags landing on him.

"What the!" He looked to see Ryoko and Ayeka asleep on the floor right next to his door. They both woke up and immediately began the drama again.

"Tenchi! Please don't go!" They both cried, still sleepy as they each grabbed onto him.

Tenchi struggled back onto his feet, trying to detach the girls from his body. "C'mon Ryoko, Ayeka, I'm going... and…that's…final!"

Katsuhito and Nobuyuki were waiting outside with the car started up. Tenchi inched his way outside, both Ayeka and Ryoko were still clinging to each of his feet. Katsuhito sighed at the sight. Both he and Nobuyuki went to Tenchi's sides to detach the girls. Both, still tired, didn't put up _too_ much of a fight. With the girls restrained, Tenchi was able to pack his bags into the car, and take a seat in the back.

Katsuhito and Nobuyuki escorted the girls back inside, "C'mon girls, go get some sleep." Katsuhito said in a comforting voice. They then went back to the car and took off for the train station.

Tenchi sat in the back, silent for most of the ride. Katsuhito, who was sitting the front passenger seat, noticed his solemn manner. He attempted to break the uncomfortable silence, "So, excited, big college man?"

Tenchi, seemingly off in space, didn't answer at first, but soon perked up, "Huh? Oh yeah, of course, it'll be fun."

"Why so gloom, son?" Nobuyuki asked.

"Oh, I just feel bad for the girls, we've been through a lot together, they seemed really upset." Tenchi answered.

"Oh, don't worry about them, they seem sad, but I'm sure they'll get over it… or they'll continue with their drastic behavior until someone gets killed." Katsuhito said.

"Yup, more than likely." Tenchi and Nobuyuki chimed simultaneously.

Tenchi was seen off at the train station by his father and grandfather, "And don't worry about the girls, they'll be fine, just remember to have fun, that's what college is for!" Nobuyuki said.

"Yes, college is a big step in life, study hard and party harder, this where you become an adult." Katsuhito added.

"Yeah, I'm sure I'll perk up, just need some time, I'm really gonna miss those girls, we had lots of fun in our adventures traveling through space, kinda makes college seem like not such a big venture." Tenchi replied.

The conductor yelled out of the train, "All aboard!"

"Oh, that's me." Tenchi said then picked up his bags and headed for the nearest car. He took a window seat on the second level and waved bye to his father and grandfather as the train took off. Tenchi grabbed his cell phone out of his bag and texted Keisuke.

_Tenchi01: Mission successful._

As the message was sent, Tenchi heard a small alert come from the seat behind him. It caught his attention. He then heard someone typing behind him on their cell phone.

_Cunninlynguist69Sexfiend: That's good._

The alert went off and Tenchi got his message. Tenchi typed again.

_Tenchi01: I think you're right behind me._

_Cunninlynguist69Sexfiend: Really? Look, then._

Tenchi sat up on his seat and looked at the passenger behind him; low and behold, it was Keisuke. The two gave each other acknowledging nods. Keisuke picked up his bag and took the seat next to Tenchi, the two shook hands. "So, we finally meet, huh?" Tenchi greeted cheerfully.

"Yup." Keisuke replied.

"Gee… you're a lot shorter than I thought… heavier too." They lapsed into an uncomfortable silence that lasted for a few minutes.

The silence was eventually broken as the two spent much of the train ride catching up. Tenchi showed some pictures he had on his cell phone to Keisuke.

"This is Ryoko. This is Ayeka. This is her little sister, Sasami. This is Washu, she's a scientist. And this is Kiyone and Mihoshi." Tenchi provided commentary on a group picture.

"Well, I gotta admit, I was skeptical when you talked about living with six girls, but call me a believer now. They're all foreign?" Keisuke asked.

"Yup." Tenchi confirmed.

"Do you date any of them?" Keisuke asked.

"Uh… no." Tenchi replied.

"So… they're single?" Keisuke queried.

"Well, uh… it's kinda complicated." Tenchi said, embarrassed.

"Are you trying to tell me you live with six girls and you haven't put the moves on any of them?" Keisuke asked, incredulously.

"No…" Tenchi trailed.

"Tenchi, are you a homosexual? 'Cause I'm fine if you are, but I would have appreciated it if you had told me earlier.." Keisuke asked, genuinely confused.

"No, no, it's not that. It's just that the girls can be very… demanding." Tenchi exasperated.

"I don't get it." Keisuke replied.

Tenchi laughed nervously, "Uh… so enough about me, any pictures of your family?"

Keisuke sat back and put his hands behind his head, "Nope."

"Oh... You said your sister goes to this school?" Tenchi tried again.

Keisuke looked out the window dazedly, "Yup."

"Cool, looking forward to meeting her too." Tenchi replied.

Shooting a look at Tenchi, Keisuke warned "Stay away from her, she's an evil psychopathic bitch. Anyways, you got a sister?"

"Not that I know of." Tenchi looked a little alarmed by the warning, shrugged.

Keisuke raised a brow, "O…kay…"

Tenchi rubbed the back of his neck, "Well, I have lots of family, let's put it that way."

"Oh... You're a strange guy, Tenchi." Keisuke replied simply.

Tenchi laughed nervously again as the train pulled into the station. The two boys grabbed their luggage out from their overhead compartments, and struggled to make their way off the train.

"So, the university's supposed to be close to here. I say we walk, since I really need to save money now." Keisuke said.

"Sounds good to me." Tenchi replied.

The two made their way out of the train station. As they left, a dark, shadowy figure wearing a fedora and trench coat, leaning on a wall in the station kept a suspiciously vigilant eye on the two boys. As soon as they left, he left as well.

The two made it to the university grounds, they were amazed at how big it was. The campus was covered in old-style buildings and many students were studying and hanging out all over. Keisuke was mostly amazed at how many girls there were. "Looks like we've got our work cut out for us, Tenchi." He quipped.

The two headed for the Freshmen Registration Center where they were given keys to a room in the freshmen dorm, and were also taken on a tour of the campus by another student working for the administration. The tour was held on a school motorized cart since there was a lot of ground to cover. The tour guide was named Ebisu; he was a short, fat, nerdy-looking sophomore who was a little more than enthusiastic about the school. He spoke to the boys in a strong and authoritative tone. "Now listen up, new fish, cause I'm doing you a big favor by being seen with you freshmen losers around the campus, and I don't want to be annoyed any further by having to repeat myself. Now, Hanayama University is the best college in all of Japan and if you two expect to be any sort of reputable Wolverines, then you'd better learn to live by that guideline."

"I'm sorry, I didn't catch that part." Keisuke said.

"Hey! No backtalk from the freshmen!" Ebisu snapped back.

As Ebisu drove the school cart, a football flew in through the passenger side, hitting him square in the face and causing him to lose control of the vehicle, crashing into a bush. He quickly tried to recover himself, looked over at some other students who apparently threw the football. "Ha ha, nice throw. Caught your ball, guys!" He said as he threw it back to them, then backed up the vehicle and continued driving.

A voice from one of the students yelled out as he drove away, "You suck, Ebisu!"

The tour made its way to the dorm area where all the sorority and frat houses rested. "That's Alpha-Beta, that's Gamma over there, that's where I'm from."

"So that's where all the freaks live?" Keisuke asked.

"You wanna walk the rest of the way?" Ebisu replied, angrily.

The cart drove by a very large Castle-like house that appeared to be unoccupied. "What's that big one right there?" Tenchi asked?

Ebisu halted the car in front of the house. "That there's nobody's house." He replied

"Oh, so they just built a huge mansion to get rid of the extra oxygen, brilliant school you've got here." Keisuke remarked.

"Very funny, freshman, but it used to be inhabited, many times." Ebisu replied.

"Well, what's the story?" Tenchi asked.

Ebisu set the parking break, then began to explain the legend of the Old Dean's Mansion...

"Well, you see, the story goes that the house was built back in 1974 and was supposed to be the new Dean's house; but right from construction the house had problems. While they were laying out the foundation, there was a huge earthquake that swallowed ten workers... but construction continued. The workers said the land was cursed, but the Dean wanted it built. So, eventually it was, and the Dean lived there for a while. Legend goes, as he lived in that house, he started to become crazy, kids said the house was haunted, they said the Dean became possessed. One day, the Dean went missing. The house was searched and his body was discovered down in the basement. Apparently, the Dean had dug a tunnel going straight down into the basement floor. The hole was over fifty feet deep and the Dean had fallen into the hole and broken his neck. After that, nobody wanted to live in the house.

The school won't tear it down because of how expensive it was to build it, they keep hoping they're gonna make some money back... They've had a few renters over the years, but none have stayed for long. The last people to stay there were a group of rich freshmen who didn't wanna stay in the freshmen dorm. A month later, all the renters were found brutally murdered at the hands of each other... a day remembered around here as 'The Midterm Massacre'."

"And it's still up for rent after all that?" Tenchi asked, sounding confused.

"Yup. Each year the Housing Board lowers the cost of rent, but no one's crazy enough to buy..."" Ebisu replied.

"Hmm… So, how cheap is it, exactly?" Keisuke asked.

"I don't know, you're gonna have to talk to housing if you wanna know that. Why, you want it?" Ebisu asked.

"Maybe." Keisuke replied.

"Well, just remember to save some money for your funeral. But enough of that, there's so many other great things to see. So little time." Ebisu said as he put the gold cart back into drive and drove away.

Keisuke continued to stare at the house as they drove away, the wheels in his head turning.

As they continued their tour of the campus, that same suspicious dark figure from the train station continued to watch the boys as he sat on a bench across from the mansion previously mentioned.

The tour eventually wrapped up, and Keisuke and Tenchi were dropped off at the freshmen dorm rooms. They made their way up to their room, which Keisuke was disappointed by. It was small, cramped, not nearly enough space for the likes of his rich upbringing. "You mean I gotta live here for the next year?"

"Is there something wrong?" Tenchi asked.

"Well, look at it, what a dumpy… small… is this a room or the janitor's closet?" Keisuke complained.

"It is kinda small, but hey, it's better than nothing." Tenchi said.

"This will not do…" Keisuke said as he scratched his chin. "Hmm…" He said, as he thought. "Tenchi, what do you think of that mansion we saw earlier?"

"You mean the haunted one?" asked Tenchi.

"Bah, you don't believe in spooks, do you?" Keisuke replied incredulously.

Tenchi shifted his eyes "Well, yeah, I actually do, I grew up in a shrine. What are you thinking?"

Keisuke scratched his chin, "What if we rented that place?"

Tenchi shot Keisuke an odd stare, "Uh… did you not listen to the stories?"

"Ghosts don't scare me..." Keisuke scoffed.

Tenchi sighed heavily, "C'mon, Keisuke, be realistic, we can't rent that place out, not by ourselves, they said it's cheap, but it's a mansion, can't be THAT cheap. Didn't your parents cut you off or something?"

"Yes, but, we CAN afford it." Keisuke said.

Tenchi raised his eyebrow, "Huh?"

"When we took a tour of the administration buildings, I got this pamphlet showing all the available places to rent on campus, look at the price of that place." He said as he showed the pamphlet to Tenchi.

Tenchi looked at the price, "Yeah, just like I said, we couldn't afford that monthly rent, not if we expect to, you know, eat."

"True, very true. But we don't need to have all the money up front, we can lease it at a fraction of that price." Keisuke replied.

Tenchi still didn't understand, "And then what?"

"I have a plan that's foolproof. Now hear me out, there's rich kids like me that come into this school all the time, and you have to live on campus, but you can't join a sorority or fraternity until your second year. They're not gonna wanna live in this dump either. BUT, they can rent from a party that's outside of the school system. So, here's my proposition: we lease the place, then we advertise to freshmen, rich freshmen who haven't heard any of that hocus pocus and who don't wanna live in the freshmen dorms. We collect their rent, we use it to the pay the lease, and not only does that cover housing and cost of living, but we'll have lots of dough still left over." Keisuke explained.

"You're talking about renting a leased house, that's kind of illegal, isn't it?" Tenchi asked.

Keisuke tried to reason with that logic, "Only illegal if you get caught. C'mon Tenchi, you go in with me on this, and we'll be filthy stinking rich… I'll be filthy stinking rich again! I won't have to get a job, and neither will you, we'll be on easy streak. And just in case you're scared, we'll only put my name on the lease, that way if we're discovered, I'll be the only one liable. All you have to do is put up the half the money."

Tenchi thought hard and deeply about the pros and cons of the situation. "Okay, I guess I'll do it, but we'd better not get in trouble, I'm not rich like you, so I can't afford to be kicked out of this school."

Keisuke cheered inside, "You have my word, this plan will go off without a hitch. Now all I have to do is get my money from that evil bitch."

Keisuke paid a visit to the evil bitch's (his sister) sorority house where he pleaded to her for the money. Kai, as usual, was giving him a hard time in the matter. "Hmm… that's quite a bit of money there, too much for housing. Our beloved parents gave me full responsibility of your school funds, what kind of daughter would I be to disappoint them?"

"Just give me the money, bitch." Keisuke demanded.

"Now that's not very nice, why should I? I know the freshmen dorms didn't cost that much when I started going here." She said in a cool and collective tone.

Keisuke growled, "Well, inflations a bitch, and so are you, now give me the money."

"You tell me exactly what it is you're planning, first!" Kai demanded.

"I said housing. It's fair game, damn it." Keisuke snapped at his sister.

"You're lying! I know it! So what are you really planning to spend this money on, fat boy, the world's largest bucket of fried chicken?" Kai mocked.

"You give me that money, or I'll tell everyone on campus you have yeast!" Keisuke yelled.

Kai laughed, "So? I'll tell everybody about the time you got the detachable shower head stuck in your ass."

Keisuke steamed with anger, "Grr… I'll tell mom and dad about your abortion!"

Kai's face suddenly went very pale, "What? You… you..." She stuttered with uncontrollable fury, "You are the biggest piece of shit in the world, you're lower than shit, you're shit's shit!" she screamed at him.

Keisuke stared at her with his devious grin and held out his palm, "The money…" Kai, red in the face, threw a piece of paper with the account number at his face. Keisuke grabbed it and made his way out, "Good talk, sis." He said smiling as he left the room. Kai was left to cry facedown on her bed, her sorority sisters rushed in to see what the ruckus was about. Keisuke continued to saunter away.

"Well, I think you're crazy, but the money's good. Here's the keys." The school treasurer said as he accepted Keisuke's money to lease the mansion. Keisuke and Tenchi celebrated their transaction with sushi and a night out on the town.

"Woo-hoo! We did it Tenchi!." Keisuke exclaimed. He pulled out a notebook from his front pocket, "Look, I've already got a list of interested renters, there's even an American transfer bitch on there. We are gonna be sitting prettier than Miss Universe, I tell you!" He told Tenchi, as the two walked out of a sushi bar in a high-end part of town.

"Yeah, I gotta admit, this does seem too good to be true." Tenchi replied.

Keisuke laughed, "But it is true. I tell you, who needs a college education when you gotta brain like mine!."

As they walked down the crowded streets of the college town, they were followed from a distance by the same suspicious dark figure that had been following them all day. Still, the boys were none the wiser.

Meanwhile, another dark male figure, in an unknown location was keeping a visual eye on the boys from means of a holographic monitor. He snickered as he watched them, "Yes… that house is truly… too good to be true." He said in a devious voice. His surroundings were dark, as if he were in the black of space. Sitting on a chair in the middle of this huge dark room, he turned the chair around to face the wall, which opened revealing a small squad of mechanized robot warriors. "The time to attack is now, there'll be no one to stop us this time!"

The boys continued to walk back to the university where their mansion awaited. They started to stray away from the crowd and were walking by a closed construction area. Keisuke noticed the area and stopped, "Hey Tenchi, let's cut through here to get back to the campus."

Tenchi, still walking, looked back at Keisuke, "Oh, no thanks, I think I've broken enough laws for one day." He replied nervously.

"C'mon, don't be a wuss!" Keisuke pressed on, and went ahead through the construction site. Tenchi stopped and sighed, then proceeded to follow Keisuke.

"I don't think this is such a good idea." Tenchi said nervously.

"Tenchi, has anyone told you that you need to lighten up? What's the worst that can happen?" Immediately following those words, one of the large mechanized warriors as aforementioned dropped out of the sky in front of the two boys. The impact sent them both flying backwards into a ditch. They recovered and slowly peeked their heads out of the ditch to see the mecha standing before them.

It was large, about ten feet tall, colored silver, held a face like an ancient samurai warrior, and wielded a large sword that more resembled a large butcher knife. The mecha pointed the sword, tip first at the two boys.

"What the hell is that thing?" Keisuke yelled, confused.

Tenchi quickly climbed out of the ditch. "You stay here, I'll take care of this!" He told Keisuke, as he drew his Juraian sword from his pocket. Keisuke watched the spectacle, understandably dumbfounded.

The mecha rushed Tenchi by means of rocket propelled shoes, it took one swing at Tenchi, who blocked it, but the blow caused him to slide on his feet a few feet backwards. The two both shot backwards, Tenchi came in with a forward attack, hacking and slashing, the mecha blocking each strike. Tenchi finally came in with a high blow from the left side that stuck the mecha's sword into the ground. With the mecha briefly unarmed, Tenchi jumped into the air and came down with his blade swiftly, successfully cutting the mecha down to the middle. Both sides of the newly split machine fell to the ground, shooting sparks. Keisuke, wondering what the hell just happened, peeked his head out from the ditch again and saw Tenchi standing over his fallen adversary.

"Woah… What the hell? What are you, a Jedi?" Tenchi looked at Keisuke, noticeably worried about the event the other boy just witnessed.

"Well, uh, it's kind of a complicated story." Tenchi laughed.

Keisuke climbed out of the ditch warily, "Well, you sure did make quick work of it… now… what the hell is going on here?" Without warning, six more mechas dropped in, surrounding Tenchi.

"Uh oh." Keisuke deadpanned, then promptly ran back to hide in the ditch.

Tenchi, surrounded by mechas, donned his battle face, then went in for the attack. He struck two of the mecha with his sword, the power from each strike pushing the mechas to the side. Two more mechas attacked from behind and sliced at Tenchi. He dodged both blows by jumping into the air, and landing on top of one of mecha's swords. Using the sword as a walkway, Tenchi ran up, attempting to strike the mecha's face, but was thwarted as another mecha came down from above and kicked Tenchi about fifty feet to the side. On the ground, all of the mechas rushed Tenchi, who replied by giving them each one strong swoop of his sword. From there on, it turned to a game of dodge and strike. Tenchi was eventually taken when a mecha came up from behind him and put him into a stronghold.

Keisuke, seeing Tenchi in distress and triggered by adrenaline, rushed to assist him. He found a metal pole lying on the ground which he picked up and used to rush the mechas. "Don't worry Tenchi, I'll help you!" He exclaimed as he ran towards the ruckus and struck one of the mechas huddled around Tenchi on the back. The mecha was barely phased by this blow, it simply turned around and punched Keisuke in the chest, sending him flying back into the ditch. With Tenchi restrained, one of the mechas prompted to deal a critical blow. He came forward, thrusting his sword towards Tenchi's torso. The blade was just mere inches away from his chest when it suddenly halted. Tenchi, trying to regain himself, looked at the mecha who almost killed him and saw a blade sticking through its torso.

Standing behind the mecha was that same suspicious dark figure who had been following the boys all day. The figure drew his sword from the mecha's torso, it fell to the ground instantly. The figure looked at Tenchi, who was still restrained. The other mechas had also paused the battle. "Looks like you could use some help, Tenchi Masaki Jurai." The figured said.

Tenchi, realizing the mechas were stunned, used this chance to free himself. With his sword still in hand, he used it to stab at the side of the mecha that was holding him, the machine released him and was stunned, giving Tenchi ample time to cut it in half.

There were four mechas left, the figure made quick work of them through a flash of speed, as he ran through the foes multiple times, using his blade to cut them into small pieces. Tenchi stared at the figure who turned around to take his coat and hat off, revealing a tall, long-haired man with a goatee. "Wow, thanks, whoever you are."

The man calmly brushed his hair back, "It's my pleasure to serve the Emperor of Jurai."

"How do you know who I am?" Tenchi asked.

"Everyone knows who you are, especially since you defeated Kagato." The man said simply.

"Well, who are you? You're not too bad with a sword yourself." Tenchi said cheerfully.

"My name is Akura, I am the Head Guard of the Royal Family of the Empire of Genissant." The man explained.

Tenchi quirked a brow, "Genissant? Never heard of you."

Akura smiled, "Well, we're not quite the same distinction as Jurai's empire, at least not anymore. So where's the other one?"

Tenchi looked a bit worried at that, "Keisuke? Listen, you don't need to do anything to him, I'm sure he won't break any Galaxy Police laws of developing planets, you don't have to worry."

"I'm not going to kill him, I just want to talk to him." Akura chuckled.

"Oh, well, he's right over there." Tenchi pointed towards the ditch where the mecha had tossed Keisuke.

Tenchi and Akura walked over to the ditch where Keisuke lay unconscious. He opened his eyes slowly, groaning "Did anyone get the number of that truck?" He said in a daze.

"Bah, pathetic." Akura said in disgust.

Tenchi helped Keisuke to his feet, he stood up rubbing his face and his eyes. "Tenchi? Oh, man, I just had the weirdest dream…" As his vision recovered, he noticed Akura standing there, "Who the hell is that?"

Akura gave Keisuke a dirty look, "That'll all be explained momentarily… on my ship."

"On your sh—" Keisuke tried to inquire before he was thrust up into the air on a sort of tractor beam at lightening fast speed along with Tenchi, Akura, and the remnants of the fallen mechas. Keisuke screamed in fright as he flew up past the stratosphere into space until he eventually landed in a large dark room, which was promptly lit to reveal the interior of a spaceship.

Keisuke recovered himself, and sporadically looked at his surroundings, "Wh-where are we?" He asked in a frightened tone.

Akura sighed, "Calm down, fool, you're on my spaceship."

Keisuke gave him a confused look, "Space? Ship?" He was stricken with disbelief at first, until he looked out a big window in the room, where he saw the Earth and the Moon in plain view. He stood there slack-jawed for a few moments, but his amazement was soon overcome by further confusion, "Oh yeah, now I'm really calm. What the hell is this supposed to be?" He said, almost angrily.

"Space. Ship. Read my lips." Akura replied, nastily.

"Yeah, but…" Keisuke floundered in disbelief.

"Uh, he's probably a little distraught, he's not used to this sort of thing." Tenchi assured Akura.

The pile of mecha remnants lay on the floor of the ship's interior. Akura walked over to it, "Let's get rid of the garbage," he said as a holographic control panel appeared before him. He pressed a few buttons and an opening in the floor was revealed, which took the 'garbage' out of the room. He then lit up a cigarette.

Keisuke saw this and a light bulb went off in his head, "Hey, good idea, I can use one after all this crap." He said as he attempted to light up his own cigarette.

"Sorry, pal, I'm the only one allowed to smoke on my ship." Akura said

Keisuke frowned then put away his cigarette.

"Now, let's get to business shall we? You see, you're very important to me." Akura said.

"I can only imagine what's going on now." Tenchi replied, believing Akura was speaking to him.

"Not you, the other one." He replied, pointing to Keisuke.

Keisuke pointed at himself in the "Me?" fashion. "This isn't some sort of gay thing is it?" He asked.

"No..." Akura replied, in a confused manner.

"Are you sure?" Keisuke asked, brow quirked.

Akura growled out, "Yes, you idiot, now listen up—"

"Cause if it is, I have no problem with that personally, but I don't swing that way." Keisuke interrupted.

"Shut up and pay attention! You, Keisuke, are very important to the universe." Akura barked.

Now Keisuke looked very confused, "Is the universe gay?"

"Okay, that's it... One more word from you and it's out the window, to hell with the universe!" Akura said, highly annoyed.

Keisuke finally decided to shut up, which gave Akura the chance to continue explaining the situation.

"Now, what I'm about to tell you may come as a shock since you've lived on Earth your entire life, but it is of the upmost importance. You, Keisuke, are the Prince and last hope for my Empire, and the rest of the universe." Akura pronounced.

"Keisuke? Really?" Tenchi asked, skeptical.

"Yes, Tenchi. You and he both share much in common and you both need to listen up. I come from an empire known as Genissant, we are small, but were once a very powerful force in the universe. Over a million years ago, our Empire was the defining power of the universe. We were in possession of an item, an item known as The Rock of Beryllos. It was a mystical stone that had the power to destroy entire galaxies.

Our royal family were the only people in the universe able to control its power, and with it, we brought upon a tyrannical rule of the universe. It was a dark time that our Empire is now ashamed of, and is one of the reasons why we are kept at limited power by Jurai and the Galaxy Police. We are now but a speck of what our ancestors were. Our power was felt throughout the universe until fifty-thousand years ago, when fleets upon fleets of every other power in the galaxy attacked the royal ship which was carrying the Rock. The battle was immense, we could not use the Rock out of fear of destroying ourselves in the process.

Our ship, along with every other ship in that battle was destroyed and the Rock was lost in space for millennia. Without use of it, the Rock eventually became dormant, and crash landed on the Earth ten-thousand years ago. The impact brought power and knowledge to the primitive people of the planet, which eventually birthed your systems of writing and civilization. By this time, Jurai and the Galaxy Police had taken almost full control of the universe. They knew that the Rock had landed on this planet, which is why they established the Law of Developing Planets to keep anybody from ever recovering the Rock. Jurai and the Galaxy Police felt it was too powerful to be let out again. It wasn't until fifty years ago, when the Rock's impact site was dug up and the Rock's location became known to many evils in the universe, who to this day want nothing more but it to be in their possession. With the secret out, and the heat on this small planet..." Akura trailed off ominously.

Akura lit another cigarette and went on, "Tenchi… It was no mistake that your Grandfather Yosho chose this planet to hide on. He came here specifically to keep track of the Rock, and you two, the Prince of Jurai, and the Prince of Genissant… it is no mistake why you two became friends, or why you were both accepted to Hanayama University. Our agents have worked the fates in your favor. You two have been chosen to be the final guardians of the Rock, until its death."

"Death? What do you mean?" Tenchi asked.

"The Rock is a living thing, it can live forever, but only when it is used. Being dormant for the last fifty-thousand years has taken its toll and in four years, it will completely die, becoming nothing more than a piece of granite in the Earth's crust, its power unable to be used by anyone. The evils that desire its power know of this, and are making their move before it's too late. You two have to make sure that no one comes into possession of the Rock that lies beneath your home." Akura explained.

"Well, that's a neat story and all, but why am I chosen? I can't fight, what the hell can I do?" Keisuke asked.

"You Keisuke, possess an ancestral power, only you can control the Rock, the evils want not only the Rock, but your blood as well, to gain your power to control the Rock. You would have been hunted nevertheless. That's why your mother and father, the Emperor and Empress of Genissant sent you at a young age to live on Earth. You were protected by me and Yosho. Now it's time to learn who you truly are, and become the protector of the Rock." Akura finished.

"So, you mean my parents aren't really my parents?" Keisuke asked.

"I'm sure it must come as a real shock to you, but it is true." Akura replied.

"You mean my sister's not really my sister? Woo-hoo! I knew there was no evil in me!" Keisuke cheered at the thought.

"You sure are taking this well." Akura said, confused.

"Are you kidding? This is great! I can get all the pussy I can handle now, like Tenchi!" Keisuke replied, enthusiastically.

"Okay, then. Glad we're at an understanding. Any further questions?" Akura asked.

"Just one, my parents never told me I was adopted, now I can understand them trying to keep that information from me, but surely my sister would've said something, she's just THAT much of a bitch. How do you explain that?" Keisuke asked.

"You weren't adopted, at least not by your parent's knowledge. You see, when you were conceived, your real parents used our Empire's technology to teleport you to your Earth mother's womb. That way, your identity could be completely concealed by being birthed by a human. Your enemies would be none the wiser about who you really were, at least until the time came when you and Tenchi were bought that house. Somehow, someone got word of our plans and they knew you were human, but didn't know which one until today. Your parents chose the Aomori's in preparation for your acceptance into Hanayama, they knew the school your parents donated to was connected to Hanayama and with the way Earth's hierarchy works, it was very simple for you to be accepted." Akura replied.

"So… you're saying I'm like Jesus?" Keisuke asked.

"Yes, exactly like Jesus... Any more questions?" Akura replied.

"Not from me, you've pretty much asked me to be a house sitter to my own house, sounds simple enough." Keisuke sat back, relaxed.

Akura snickered, "I'm afraid it won't always be that easy, son. Tenchi, you know the drill, keep him briefed. Until then, you guys have school tomorrow. If there's any trouble, you don't have to call, I'll be around. Mostly up here on my ship."

"Gee, this all seems to be happening a little fast." Tenchi examined.

"Well, time is short, so don't fuck anything up." Akura said as he brought up another monitor which he used to beam the boys back down to Earth. They landed in the exact same construction site from before.

Tenchi and Akura stood there with blank stares on their faces. "That jerk couldn't even drop us off at home?" Keisuke said, angrily.

"So… you're not fazed by any of this?" Tenchi asked.

"Meh, I figured you went through the same thing, I'd be a bit selfish to react differently." Keisuke replied, then sighed. "Well, I guess we'd better start _walking_ home."

The boys made their way back to the college and to their mansion. They unlocked the double doors and opened them to see a huge interior. The entry way was bigger than most houses. There were doors leading into multiple rooms on each side of the gigantic entry way and a staircase leading to even more. The place had been kept clean by the school. Keisuke looked around appreciatively, "Wow, this is bigger than my dad's house, I can't believe it!"

"I gotta admit this turned out to be a good idea." Tenchi said.

"Yeah, except now we're gonna have to fight off evil alien robots for the next four years. I'd better get some good pussy like you do for this." Keisuke added, then yawned. "Well, we'd better get some sleep, our renters are gonna be moving in tomorrow, and we got lots of stuff to move in."

"Uh… remember the stuff about alien robots? It doesn't sound like such a good idea to bring any other humans into this house, anymore." Tenchi said.

"Well, how the hell else are we supposed to pay for it? That guy give you any money?" Keisuke replied.

Tenchi sighed, "I guess you're right."

The two set up their beds in the entry way. They lay awake for most of the night reflecting on the day's events. "You know, Tenchi… I have a feeling that this is gonna be a looooong four years…" Keisuke said, as he shut his eyes and went to sleep in preparation for the upcoming events.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter Two: Home And Dry**

Keisuke awoke bright and early the next morning in his and Tenchi's newly acquire mansion. After getting up and stretching a bit, Keisuke grabbed Tenchi's left shoulder and shook him awake.

Tenchi's eyes opened immediately and sat up, "Hmm? Time to wake up already?" He asked, still yawning.

"Yup, we've got a busy day ahead of us." Keisuke replied. He sat back down next to Tenchi, "You know, this whole thing is very strange."

"Gee, ya think?" Tenchi replied.

"Yeah, it's like, I don't have any memory of what my real home is like, or my real parents. Until last night, I was completely none of the wiser of who I truly was. I mean, I feel like a human… I've never been good at anything in my entire life, everyone always hated me… how am I supposed to be the Prince of an Empire? My sister was always the better child, she was always the smart one, the attractive one, the athletic one, I'm starting to think this is all one elaborate hoax." Keisuke said.

"Don't worry, I felt the exact same way. You just gotta remember, it's mind over matter, if you believe in yourself, truly believe, you can accomplish anything. I never thought I was particularly good at anything, but once I found out what I was meant to do, I suddenly knew I had to get up and go. Everyone has potential, Keisuke, sometimes they just need a little push to find it." Tenchi replied.

"Yeah, I watch anime too, I've heard all the same bullshit." Keisuke said as he stood back up. "Well, our tenants will be arriving today, let's get to work."

The boys went into the kitchen where they made some coffee using Keisuke's instant coffee maker and began to look over their tenants and plans for the day. Keisuke had files on all the renters, including pictures and brief biographies. He pulled out the first file and simultaneously lit his first cigarette of the morning.

The first file contained a picture of an eighteen year-old boy with strong facial features and spiky brown hair folded into a Japanese headband; "This is Daisuke Matsu, he's the son of Olympic Gold Medalist Kiyoshi Matsu. Kid's a fucking jock, but his dad's endorsements will make sure he keeps the rent up." Keisuke explained. He put Daisuke's file into the back and opened up the next file which was lying below it.

This next file showed another eighteen year-old boy, this one had black, slicked back hair, making him look sort of like a Japanese John Travolta, circa-Grease. He also donned a leather jacket to match. "Here we have Junichi Sato. His father owns a very prosperous bank chain stretching as far as New York City. He grew up in the States where he started up a greaser act which he stubbornly keeps up to this day. But like I said, bank has money, money pays the rent." He did the motions once again and opened up two other files.

These two files showed female tenants: one had long blonde hair, green eyes, and appeared to be more of Caucasian descent rather than Japanese. Her picture looked more like a glamour shot than anything else. The other girl was Japanese, with short brown hair kept in a pony-tail and donned thick-rimmed glasses complimented by a plain turtleneck sweater. "These two go hand-in-hand. The first one's Denise Barlow, an American heiress and popular socialite. Her father sent her to Japan to study at a young age, and that's apparently where she likes it. She's a bitch-whore, but she's damn smart. That fact can possibly be attributed to this other girl, Fumiko Izumi. She became friends with Denise when she moved here, ever since, the girl's acted as her personal secretary. She graduated top of her class every year in high school, and suspiciously, Denise wasn't too far behind. The two go everywhere together, including college, which Denise pays Fumiko's tuition, as well as her rent. These are the silver tuna of the bunch, probably the wealthiest tenants we'll be receiving. I gave Denise a special contract, which guarantees her the largest room with a private bathroom. Extra cost, of course."

Keisuke pulled out the last file from the bunch, this one contained no picture. "Then, we have our mystery person, I've only had contact with them via email, they want to discuss the contract in person before they make the deal. Be cautious about this one, Tenchi, when they come to the door, make sure I screen them before we sign anything, it could be a trap. Any questions?"

"Yeah, if we're not supposed to be found out by the school, don't you think it's gonna look a bit suspicious that we're gonna be moving in all these people?" Tenchi examined.

"Yes, I thought of that ahead of time. As far as the administration knows, these tenants are merely friends helping us move in. Got it?" Keisuke said.

"Got it." Tenchi nodded.

Meanwhile, back at the Masaki residence, all the girls were in a terrible depression, they each went along with their daily chores, faces filled with gloom and distress.

Sasami was busy fixing breakfast for everybody while Ryo-Oki lay on the table next to her, sighing heavily. Sasami, seeing Ryo-Oki's distress, stood there cutting carrots, trying cheer her up. She set down an extra carrot next to the cabbit. The listless Ryo-Oki glanced at it, and although showing no improvement on her depression, ate it slowly.

Sasami sighed, "I know it's hard Ryo-Oki, but it's best for Tenchi. We can't expect to keep him cooped up in this house all the time. He needs to live his own life." She assured Ryo-Oki, as she continued to chop various vegetables.

Ayeka came in through the back door with a bucket of water, "Here's the water you requested for the boiled eggs, Sasami." she said, noticeably depressed like the rest of the household.

"Thanks Ayeka, just set it on the table." She thanked her, solemnly.

Ayeka walked up next to her sister, "You too, huh? The clouds are certainly boundless over this house today." She said, putting her hand on Sasami's shoulder.

"It sure is boring without Tenchi around." said Sasami.

"Truer words have never been spoken." Ayeka concurred.

Sasami sighed, "You should go round everyone up for breakfast, it should be ready soon."

Ayeka nodded then went into the living room where Kiyone and Mihoshi sat on the couch reading magazines. "Sasami told me to get everybody into the dining room for breakfast." Ayeka alerted them.

Kiyone and Mihoshi both nodded in response.

Ayeka then looked around the room, "Where's Ryoko?" she asked.

"She's in her room, sleeping her depression away." Kiyone answered.

"Oh, that woman can be such a baby sometimes! We're all in distress, but you don't see us lazing about all morning." Ayeka exclaimed in disgust, then sighed. "Well, I think I'll deal with that mess later, I'll go get Washu first." Ayeka went to the staircase closet where Washu's parallel-dimensional room was located. She knocked on the door as she simultaneously opened it, "Miss Washu? Breakfast is almost ready."

Washu was seen busy on her computer working on something or another, without looking away from her computer monitor, she addressed Ayeka, "Huh? Oh yeah, just bring it into me, I'm busy working on something very important right now. Tell the rest of the girls I'm gonna need to talk with them later."

Ayeka, wise to the fact that she's never able to pull Washu from her work, just gave a nervous grin, "Uh… okay. I'll get right on that." She left and closed the door behind her, "Bring it in for her… what am I, a maid?" She asked herself, rhetorically as she walked up the stairs to fetch Ryoko.

Washu continued to work vigorously on her computer, "Heh, heh, heh, while those babies are busy whining about Tenchi's absence, I'm the only one working to solve the problem. Washu, you are such a genius. Gotta love these Earthling computer networks, sooooo easy to manipulate." she giggled to herself as she worked.

Ayeka knocked and let herself into Ryoko's room, where she saw her laying on her bed, covered in a mountain of blankets. Unlike with Washu, she was ruder while awakening Ryoko. "Ryoko! Enough of this lazing about! It's time for breakfast!" Ayeka yelled.

Ryoko gave a quiet grumble in response.

Ayeka growled to herself, then suddenly became calm, "Fine then, starve to death if you want to be that way. You know, it's hard for the rest of us too!" She exclaimed as she left, slamming the door on her way out. She walked back down the stairs, "Well, this is turning out to be a successful mission so far." She grumbled to herself as she went to eat breakfast, wondering what it was Washu would want to speak to them about later on.

Back at the mansion, Tenchi and Keisuke were packing up their bags and using the bathroom facilities to start the day. They met in back in the entry way, both were busy brushing their teeth, pots in hand.

"So when's everybody suppose to get here?" Tenchi asked.

Keisuke looked at his watch, "Soon enough…"

The doorbell suddenly rang.

"Speak of the devil." Keisuke said, as he went to answer the door.

The first tenant arrived, it was Daisuke, still donning his headband, and appeared to be suited in kick-boxer trunks with no shirt. "Hey, what's up, my man? You're Keisuke, I recognize you from the picture on your card. The name's Daisuke, put'er there." He introduced himself, holding his hand out for an impending shake. Keisuke shook his hand, it was a powerful shake with a firm grip; enough to mildly disorient Keisuke for a moment.

After the greet was through, Keisuke had to rub his hand for a moment, trying to regain feeling. "Uh... hi. That guy over there's Tenchi." Keisuke replied, pointing over to Tenchi, who waved at Daisuke.

Daisuke let himself in, only a sports duffel bag at his side,

as he stood in the entry way and took a look around. "Damn, this place is great, the ad wasn't lying."

"Glad to see you're satisfied so far. So, the movers came to your house already, right?" Keisuke asked.

"Yes sir. Came by early this morning." Daisuke replied.

"Movers?" Tenchi asked.

"Yeah, I used the extra money to start moving our tenants stuff to the house as part of the investment and a showing of good faith that this is a class-A place to rent." Keisuke replied.

"Wow, you sure did invest a lot into this." Tenchi said, amazed.

"Well, for the money these fine people are going to be paying, I think they deserve to be shown a little class." Keisuke assured. "I'm gonna go upstairs and finish getting cleaned up, greet any more of the tenants if they arrive while I'm gone." Keisuke said as he ran upstairs.

The doorbell rang again, Tenchi answered it, waiting at the door were Denise, Fumiko, and a small Pomeranian dog Denise had cradled in her right arm. "Hi there!" Denise greeted Tenchi, cheerfully. "I'm Denise, and this is my bff, Fumiko." She introduced herself, and pointed to Fumiko standing silently behind her, staring at the ground.

"Hello. I'm Tenchi Masaki." Tenchi replied, cheerfully.

"Oh, you're one of the landlords, nice to meet you!" Denise said, shaking Tenchi's hand.

Tenchi couldn't help but notice the small dog, as he was barking repeatedly at him. "Nice to meet you too…uh, cute dog."

"Yes, this is Speckles, my little baby Pomeranian sweetheart, I never go anywhere without him." Denise replied.

Denise and Fumiko showed themselves in and inspected the houses' interior. "Hmm… not bad, not bad at all. What do you think, Fumiko?" She asked.

"Uh… it's neat." Fumiko answered, briefly.

"And what do you think, Speckles?" Denise asked her dog, who, in turn, barked obnoxiously in response.

Denise turned her attention back to Tenchi, "So, what about the other man? The one I talked to on the phone, kinda looks like a lawn gnome... I can't seem to remember his name..."

Keisuke came down the stairs, looking quite annoyed, "What the hell's all that barking?" He grouched as he came down the stairs.

"Oh, there he is. Hi! Remember me?" Denise waved at Keisuke.

"Yes, of course, Denise, right?" Keisuke replied as he came into the entryway and shook her hand. He noticed the dog in a half-second flat, "I see you brought a dog." He observed, giving her a fake grin. "Uh… I believe the contract specifically stated there were to be no animals." Keisuke said.

Denise's cheerful grin faded a bit, but remained nevertheless, "Oh? Really? I saw that on the normal contract, but we didn't agree upon the normal contract." Denise argued.

"Oh yeah, well most of the contract I had you sign had the same basic principles as the original. What contract did you sign?" Keisuke asked.

"Well, if you remember correctly, I had my lawyer look upon the contract before I signed, and he marked out the no animal policy, which you didn't argue with at the time." Denise said.

"Yeah, but—" Keisuke stuttered.

"If you'd like to discuss the terms with him, I could call." Denise interrupted, as she reached for her cellular phone.

"No, no, no…" Keisuke grumbled. "Fine, the dog can stay. But no more animals, I want to keep this place clean and quiet." Keisuke reluctantly agreed.

"Hmm, glad we could come to a compromise." Denise's face reverted back to her extreme cheer.

"Yeah, I guess one little dog won't cause too much trouble." Keisuke said as he reached over to pet the dog.

The dog took one quick snap with his jaws at Keisuke's fingers as he reached in. "Ow! Why you, mother-" he exclaimed.

"Oh my!" Denise shrieked.

Keisuke shook his hand in the air to try and ease the pain, "Oh don't worry, just a little pinch, I'm fi-." He chuckled.

"You shouldn't bite such rough surfaces, you're still teething. Oh, you poor thing." Denise cried as she embraced Speckles.

Keisuke was not amused.

Suddenly, a loud engine was heard pulling up in front of the house, everyone had to cover their ears to silence the noise. The engine eventually ceased. "What the hell was that?" Keisuke exclaimed, then ran out the door to see what the ruckus was about.

Parked in front was Junichi who sat atop his Harley-Davidson motorcycle. He got up from his seat, removed his helmet and slicked back his hair in typical greaser fashion; all in a manner that appeared as if he was living the moment in slow motion.

"Oh, Jesus..." Keisuke sighed, as he witnessed Junichi's over-stylized entrance.

Junichi walked up to Keisuke and extended his hand, "How ya doin', name's Junichi." He introduced himself.

Keisuke just sort of stared at Junichi, awkwardly for a few moments, before returning the handshake. "And a whop-bop-a-lu-whop to you too." He replied.

Junichi seemed confused by this response but nevertheless, followed Keisuke back into the house, who proceeded to address everyone in session, "Well, that appears to be everyone, that is, except for our mystery person, who should be arriving shortly…" He said as he looked at his watch.

Entering the campus was none other than Keisuke's old classmate, Maiya, who drove her compact sports car through the school campus, halting in front of Keisuke and Tenchi's mansion. She put the car in park and looked at a piece of paper with the mansion's address written on it, "Yup, this is it. Hope they haven't given away all the rooms yet." She said to herself, then got out of her vehicle and approached the front door.

Tenchi, who was walking through the entry way, heard the doorbell ring, he went to answer it, where he saw Maiya standing at the other side.

Maiya smiled, "Hi, I'm Maiya Chiba, I found this advertisement and I talked briefly with one of the landlords in text, I was wondering if there was still a room for rent."

Tenchi smiled back, "Yeah, come on in, let me go get Keisuke, he's been handling all the tenants."

Maiya's expression went blank, "His name is Keisuke?"

Right about that time, Keisuke came into the entry way through one of the first floor rooms, "Hey, I heard the doorbell ring, is it our mystery person, gee, I hope it's another hot girl—" as soon as Keisuke saw Maiya, he stopped dead in his tracks.

Maiya did a figurative stop as well, her eyes widened, and her mouth gaped.

"YOU!" They both exclaimed simultaneously pointing at one another.

"No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, noooooo!" Keisuke exclaimed, pounding his foot on the floor, "Tenchi, what is _she_ doing here?"

"Uh… I think this is our mystery person." Tenchi replied nervously, "You know each other, I take it?"

"You're living here?" Maiya asked.

"I'm the landlord you talked to." Keisuke replied, still shouting at her, despite their close distance.

"You! To hell with this, I'm not renting from your fat-ass!" Maiya yelled as she turned around and began walking away.

"Yeah? Well, I wouldn't rent you, anyway, that's your MOTHER'S job!" Keisuke replied.

Maiya stopped in her tracks and turned around to continue her confrontation, "You really want to start this again, after what you did? How'd you even get accepted to this university, anyway?"

"Because I'm smart, _that's _why! And why'd you turn around? Go! Go live in those dumpy freshmen dorms!" Keisuke replied.

"Hey, hey, hey, let's all calm down here. What exactly is the situation?" Tenchi intervened before things got physical.

"The situation is that she's a total demon bitch, and I refuse to rent to her!" Keisuke exclaimed.

"Me? A demon? You'll call me that after what you did!" Maiya screeched.

"How's that bald spot, anyway?" Keisuke grinned.

"That's it, you're dead!" Maiya yelled as she charged at Keisuke.

Tenchi stepped between the two in order to calm the situation. "Now, let's all calm down here." He demanded, then waited for the two foes to simmer down. "Look, it's obvious you two have a history, but that's all in the past, this is college, it's time we start handling things like grown adults. Keisuke, you need rent money, and Maiya, you need a decent place to live. Why can't we just put our differences aside for relative gain?" Tenchi offered.

Keisuke and Maiya remained staring each other down, until they both finally relented. "Okay, I'll be willing to rent to her, if she agrees to stay out of my way." Keisuke compromised.

"It's kinda hard to stay out of your way since you're so fat, but I'll try." Maiya agreed.

"Okay, that's strike one, right there!" Keisuke exclaimed.

Maiya signed the contract and the two reluctantly shook hands.

Keisuke got a call from his cell phone, he answered, "Yeah? Wait, wait, slow down. What do you mean it wasn't enough? But that's all I had. You can't even have the decency to drive the things over here? Ah, fuck!" Keisuke lit up a cigarette then began pacing around the room. "You're not done packing yet? Just wait there if you get done, don't leave the truck there alone, I'll be there as soon as I can. Yeah, thanks a lot, asshole." Keisuke angrily hung up his phone. Tenchi and Maiya gave him matching concerned looks.

"What's going on?" Tenchi asked.

"We have a problem, I'll be back in a couple of hours." Keisuke said quickly as he left the house.

At the Masaki residence, the girls were busy eating breakfast when Washu came out of her room to call a meeting, "Meeting, everybody, listen up!" She demanded.

The girls were caught off guard, but went to attention. "Okay, so, we all miss Tenchi, right?" She asked.

"Yes, and there's no need to rub it in, what's this all about, Washu?" Kiyone replied.

Washu grinned, "Well, as not only the greatest scientific mind in the universe, but also, at this moment in time, I am the greatest problem solving mind in the universe."

"What are you saying, Washu?" Ayeka asked.

"I'm saying, I have thought up a solution to where we can still be with Tenchi, and he can still attend college." She replied.

"We're listening." said Kiyone.

"Well, using my state-of-the-art computer system, I was able to hack into the Hanayama's school networking. You know what that means?" Washu asked.

The girls awkwardly looked at Washu, then shook their heads in reponse.

"It means, I can put all of us into the Hanayama admissions system. We'll all be students at the school, which means we can all attend college alongside Tenchi." Washu proclaimed.

The girls gasped in response.

"You really mean it Washu?" Sasami asked in a hopeful tone not heard since Tenchi's absence.

"Yes, my dear Sasami. I'm one-hundred and ten percent sincere." Washu replied.

"Wow, that's great!" Mihoshi lit up.

"Isn't it!" Washu replied. "Though, I do kinda feel bad for the other students I had to delete from the list." She pondered with less enthusiasm.

Ayeka dropped her eating utensils and shot up out of her seat, "Well, what are we waiting for? Let's go!" She exclaimed without hesitance.

"Well, I understand us being able to attend, but what about Sasami, she's just a little girl." Kiyone asked.

"I also took the liberty of creating portfolios for you all." Washu explained, as she threw individual packets of papers at each of the girls.

"In Sasami's case, I said she was a child prodigy, skipped five grades and is ready and willing for a college education. What do you think Sasami, can you handle that position?" Washu asked.

"Well… my calculus is a little rusty, but I think I can handle it!" Sasami replied cheerfully.

"Good… so what do you say, you all game?" Washu asked.

The girls all replied with enthusiastic replies of "YES!" and an extra enthusiastic "Meow!" from Ryo-Oki.

"Alright, let's go see Tenchi!" Washu exclaimed.

Suddenly, Ryoko came through the floor using her wall teleporting abilities, "What's this about going to see Tenchi?" She asked in a confused tone. Failing to notice Ryoko, the girls just marched onward, utterly ignoring her and adding to Ryoko's confusion. "What's going on?" She continued to ask as she followed them out.

Nobuyuki was sitting on the living room couch reading the morning newspaper as all the girls walked passed him, "Hey, where are you girls off to?" He asked in a passive manner, keeping his eyes on the paper.

"We're going to college with Tenchi!" Sasami answered, proudly.

"Okay… have fun." Nobuyuki replied, eyes still focused on the paper.

Two and a half hours had passed since Keisuke left the mansion. Everyone waited around in relative quiet until they heard a loud diesel engine pull in front of the house, everyone went out to investigate. Sitting on the front curb, they saw Keisuke sitting in a very large semi 18-wheeler, smoking a cigarette.

"What the heck's going on, Keisuke?" Tenchi asked.

Keisuke got out of the truck and sighed. "Look… I know I promised you all first-class moving service… but my funds were cut short and now you're gonna have to settle with second-class."

"Second-class? I don't like the sound of that." Denise replied.

"What exactly are you sayin', man?" Junichi asked.

"Well, you see, I gave the movers enough money to get your stuff and load it all in the truck, but they wouldn't put it in the house, and now I'm broke, so we're looking at having to unload the stuff ourselves." Keisuke replied.

"Ourselves? Are you kidding? That'll take all day!" Denise exclaimed.

"Oh, come on guys, it's just one truck, how difficult could it really be?" Keisuke reasoned.

"Well, well, well, looks like your reputation as a screw up is following you out of high school, Keisuke." Maiya scoffed.

"That's strike two, Maiya, you're really pushing it now!" Keisuke exclaimed. "C'mon guys, we're all just starting out here, even me. It might be fun, we'll really get to know each other through the experience."

"Well, I'm not moving my stuff in, that's peasant work, your contract specifically stated loading and unloading. Besides, Fumiko and I have some last minute housewarming gifts to buy for ourselves. Come, Fumiko." Denise said as she took Fumiko by the hand and they both marched away.

Keisuke sighed. "Well, what about the rest of you, are you gonna help me out? I'll deduct it from first month's rent!"

"Well, I don't see why not, how else are we gonna get our stuff inside." Tenchi agreed.

"I'm in, moving stuff is great exercise!" Daisuke said.

"Ain't no one said I'd be bunkin' with Richard Simmons." Junichi remarked as he glared at Daisuke. "But I guess I'm in."

"Well, I don't see any reason why I should work... none of my stuff's in there." Maiya scoffed.

Keisuke sighed, then put his hand on Maiya's shoulder, "Maiya… I've always hated you, you've been a thorn in my side since Kindergarten, but I'll make a deal with you… you help out now, and as soon as I get the money, I'll use it to personally ship your stuff, and I'll even unload it myself. What do you say?" Keisuke reasoned.

Maiya thought for a moment, "Oh… okay, I guess if you put it that way."

Keisuke clapped his hands together. "Great. So we've got five people, which should be enough. Let's see, it's almost noon. That gives us about eight or so hours to get everything in by sundown." Keisuke balled his right hand into a fist and placed it in the center of the group, "On three: One. Two. Three!"

The ensemble butted their fists in one, harmonic, sweeping motion, then proceeded to get started with the hard day's work ahead of them.

Denise and Fumiko walked back to the scene, "Oh yeah, and when you put the stuff into my room, remember I left Speckles in there, make sure he doesn't get out. Ciao!" She said before leaving again.

"Yes, your highness." Maiya mumbled under her breath.

"Okay, let's get started!" Keisuke exclaimed.

Keisuke opened the truck's cargo hold revealing a huge behemoth sized armoire sitting right in the front.

"What the hell is that thing?" Junichi asked.

"That's the armoire. It's Denise's. Surprise surprise, right?" Keisuke replied.

"Damn, looks heavy." Maiya examined.

"Yup, very… we'll be moving that beast in last." Keisuke said, staring intently at it.

"Well, then why the hell did you have them pack it in front?" Daisuke asked.

Keisuke stood dumbfounded at this sudden realization for a minute, but quickly picked himself back up, "Okay, then… we'll just unload it first and set it on the curb until we're ready to put it in the house." He dismissed the problem.

Everyone got to work unloading the armoire, they first planned out their strategy of attack, "Okay, this is gonna be a real bitch, those asshole movers didn't give us a dolly, so we're gonna have to get it out of the truck like the Egyptians." Keisuke explained as he went into the truck cabin and pulled out a long wooden broom handle. He then proceeded to the break the handle into five long pieces. "Okay, so here's the drill: we've got five people. We need to get the ramp down first, then what I'm gonna do is climb into the truck behind the armoire. Tenchi and Junichi, you two will be positioned on each sides of the armoire, Daisuke, since you're the strongest, you're gonna be positioned in front of it to keep it from falling forward, the other two guys will and I will give you support from the top and sides. So basically what we're gonna do is slide it down the ramp and use the broom pieces as traction. Maiya, it's gonna be your job to pick up the pieces and keep them in front of the armoire at all times. Everyone got it?"

Everyone nodded in response and took their respective positions.

Keisuke set the broom pieces down on the ramp one in front of the other, then climbed in back of the armoire. Daisuke stood directly on the ramp in front of the armoire, Tenchi and Junichi stood on each side by the cargo opening, and Maiya stood back awaiting for her job to be needed. Keisuke gave the orders from inside the cargo hold, "Okay, is everyone ready? On the count of three, we're gonna need all our strength to push it forward onto the ramp, it should be easier once we've got that done."

Everyone gave a positive, "Got it!" In response.

Keisuke prepared to push forward on the armoire, Daisuke stood on the ramp ready to catch it. "One. Two. Three!" Keisuke exclaimed as he, Tenchi, and Junichi scooted the armoire forward onto the ramp and sticks. Once they got it onto the first stick, they simply slid it forward onto the rest where Daisuke caught it.

"Okay, Maiya, you're up!" Keisuke said.

Maiya ran forward and picked out the back three sticks and put them in front giving the boys more leverage to slide it forward again. A problem arose when one of the front sticks rolled forward, causing Daisuke to step on it and lose some of his footing. The armoire tipped over to Tenchi's side where he was forced to catch it and hold it on his own.

"Oh, shit! Maiya! Maiya! Get the stick!" Daisuke panicked as he assisted Tenchi from having the armoire fall onto him.

Maiya scurried to grab the stick as it rolled off the ramp and onto the street, she hurried back to get it back in place. Once the stick was back in place, the four boys used all their might to push the armoire back on track. "Woof, that was close." Tenchi said, relieved.

The ensemble eventually were able to get the armoire grounded on the street curb, as soon as the job was done, they fell to the ground, panting.

"That…. Sucked…" Maiya grunted.

"Okay… hard part's over… smoke break." Keisuke said as he lit up a cigarette, Junichi followed in suit.

The ensemble sat on the grass eyeing the giant armoire. "So, it's mostly boxes and smaller furniture from here on, until we have to move the damn thing into the house, that is." Keisuke explained.

"How are we gonna get that thing upstairs?" Maiya asked.

"Well… there's hope for us, Denise's has the master bedroom, which happens to be on the first floor, we just need to carry it in, but at least we'll have level footing from here on." Keisuke replied.

"Oh, good." The other four sighed in relief.

"Say, that armoire's pretty close to the curb, is that safe? Don't you think we should move it closer to even ground, or at least brace it with something?" Daisuke asked.

"Meh, I don't think we have to worry about that, it'll take one hell of a strong gust of wind to take that monstrosity down." Keisuke replied, unworried.

Just at that moment, a strong gust of wind hit, knocking the armoire off the curb and hitting the street on its side. The five witnessed the freak occurrence with strong disbelief. "Oh…kay… I guess we're gonna have to set that up in a corner somewhere…" Keisuke said, noticeably choking on his previous words.

_Meanwhile..._

The girls had already boarded the train for the university, Ayeka was busy calling the records of admission to find out Tenchi's location, "His name is 'Tenchi Masaki', he's a freshman…" She talked to the other person on the line, then waited for an answer. "Yes. Oh good! Yes, just hold on one minute while I get a pen and paper." Ayeka held out her hand to Sasami, who, in turn, reached in her bag and pulled out the very items her sister had requested. "Okay, I'm ready." Said Ayeka with the pen and paper now in her hand, she wrote down the information as it was relayed to her by the person on the other line. "Okay, I've got it, thank you very much." Ayeka hung up the cell phone.

"It seems that Tenchi has rented out a mansion on campus with some other guy named Keisuke." Ayeka informed the girls.

"Really? How sweet of him, he's already prepared for our arrival." Ryoko joyed.

"I can see you're already preparing to be a free-loader." Ayeka replied, angered by Ryoko's insolence.

"Hey! I'm planning on helping out just as much as I ever did at the house!" Ryoko defended.

"Oh, that's just great, don't strain yourself, too much. School is a very big responsibility, if you're not willing to pull your weight like the rest of us, we can be kicked out!" Ayeka exclaimed.

"Hmm... renting out a mansion, doesn't really sound like normal Tenchi behavior." Kiyone noted.

"Well, college _can_ change a person. Isn't this great, Kiyone? It'll be just like our old days together back at the academy!" Mihoshi said cheerfully.

"Please, don't remind me." Kiyone grumbled in response.

So far, the move had been going smoothly, about four hours had gone by, and the ensemble had moved most of the furniture into the entryway, deciding to place them in rooms later. At the moment, they were busy unloading boxes. Keisuke remained in the cargo hold handing boxes while the others took them inside to increase productivity.

Akura had made his way to the campus to check up on the boys, he was shocked and angered by what he witnessed. He marched right up to the truck where he saw Keisuke, "You idiots! I leave you alone for one day and this is what I see!"

Keisuke looked over and saw Akura, "Hey, it's you. Good, we can use an extra hand, take some boxes." Keisuke said as he handed a stack to Akura, appearing to have ignored Akura's words. "These go in my room, it's upstairs, third door on the right." Akura was not pleased; he dropped the boxes on to the ground, catching Keisuke's attention, "Hey! What the hell do you think you're doing? Watch the merchandise pal!" He exclaimed.

"What the hell do you think _you're _doing?" Akura replied, angrily.

"What the hell does it look like _I'm_ doing? Moving in, ya jackass." Keisuke snapped back.

"I can see that, don't you remember anything I told you! About the people who want to attack you and this house? Ring any bells?" Akura asked, as if he was speaking to a deaf person.

"Sure, I do, hold on one minute." Keisuke answered. He went back into the cargo hold and rolled out a wheeled dresser. "Think you can give me a hand with this?" He asked.

Akura reluctantly agreed.

Keisuke rolled the dresser off the ramp, "Okay, ready?" He said as he asked for Akura's assistance in carrying the piece of furniture into the house. The two continued their conversation while carrying the dresser into the house.

"Don't you remember anything I told you, you know, about the developing planets law and such?" Akura asked, still highly annoyed.

"Yes, I do, as a matter-of-fact. But you said yourself that that rule was only to keep people from discovering the Rock on this planet, besides, you want me to live in this house, how do you expect me to pay for it?" Keisuke replied.

Akura growled, "You're endangering the mission by bringing these humans into the equation!"

"Not if they don't find out." Keisuke smartly replied.

"Attacked. By. Alien. Enemies. How are you gonna explain that to them when the time comes?" Akura steamed.

"Well, they all seem to be humanoid, we'll pass them off as bill collectors." Keisuke replied, cooly.

Akura growled again, "You idiot! Having them here not only endangers you and the mission, but it endangers them, as well. Didn't you hear the story about the old Dean who first lived here? The Rock not only possesses immense power, but it also has the power to control individuals. The Dean felt its power and wanted it for himself. Gennisant's Empire was controlled by its influence for hundreds of thousands of years, that's why we were so tyrannical. If these humans live here, they're going to know the power that they live on, and they will stop at nothing to possess it, just like the Dean who killed himself trying to unearth it! Haven't you ever read _Lord of the Rings_?"

Keisuke dropped his half of the dresser onto the ground, "Okay, fine, you wanna get them out of here, let's see some money for the rent." He said, holding out his palm.

Akura remained silent.

"That's what I thought. Now help me move this damned thing." The two carried the dresser into the house and went through the entryway. They set it down for a little bit and Keisuke looked around at how full the entryway already was. "Hmm… we need more room. I guess we might as well put this thing in Denise's room since it's light enough." Keisuke said. "Lift it back up." He ordered Akura, who reluctantly replied.

Maiya came out into the entryway through the kitchen, she saw Akura and stopped in her tracks, "Oh, hello, who are you?" She asked.

"This is Akura, he's an alien from outer space." Keisuke replied causing Akura's eyes to widen as he stared down Keisuke. Keisuke looked back at him and smirked.

Maiya's eyes rolled. "Okay…" She dismissed and continued to stand there. "Freaks…" She mumbled under her breath.

The two carried the dresser to the master bedroom door. "Hey, Maiya, could you open the door for us?" Keisuke asked her.

Maiya went to open the door. Immediately, Speckles, who was still in the room, ran out and charged at Keisuke, biting at his leg. "Ow!" Keisuke yelped as the dog latched onto his ankle, tearing at his pants and skin. "Ow! Sit! Stay! Roll over!" Keisuke commanded as he shook his leg in attempts to get the dog off of him. Finally, with one strong kick, he flung Speckles off of him and into a wall, causing the animal to retreat in panic. Keisuke kneeled down to rub his wounded leg, panting from the fuss. "I'm gonna kill that dog..." He said to himself.

Hours went by as the ensemble of six moved everything out of the truck and into the house. The truck's cargo was eventually cleared, "Okay, so far we're ahead of schedule, good job everyone." Keisuke addressed everyone as they stood out on the lawn, proud of what they had accomplished so far. "Now we just got one more big thing to move into the house, then we can start arranging everything…" Keisuke said as he pointed at the armoire, still lying on the side of the street. "There's no more room left to set it in the entry way, and we don't want Denise to see the dent on the side, so we're gonna have to carry it into her room all the way. Limber up, this gonna be one hell of a chore."

The ensemble prepared to move the behemoth by securing the double-doors entering the house open. Their plan of attack went as so: Keisuke took the front right edge of armoire. Tenchi stood directly next to him on the left corner, Daisuke and Junichi took the back left and right corners, respectively, and Maiya and Akura took the left and right sides, respectively. They limbered up and prepared to move the huge armoire. They all crouched down and struggled to pick it up from the bottom. Even with the six of them, it was quite a feat to move it. They all huffed and puffed as they stumbled to move the thing into the house.

"Mother fucker, man, how much does this thing weigh?" Junichi grunted.

"Come on, you guys, we're almost to the door." Keisuke struggled to keep spirits up.

"That American bitch better be happy we're doing all this for her!" Maiya exclaimed, rationing between her breath to talk and the breath it took to keep the armoire airborne.

The six eventually made it to the front door. Even with its wide entry, the armoire was still too huge to get through the way they were carrying it. "Okay, we're gonna have to tilt it on its side to get it through." Tenchi said.

"Which way are we gonna tilt it?" Daisuke asked.

"We're gonna have to do it on your guy's side, since you have more manpower to hold it steady." Keisuke replied. (Their side being the Tenchi, Akura, Junichi side)

Keisuke, Maiya, and Daisuke both used all their strength to tip the monstrosity; Tenchi, Akura, and Junichi did the same, trying to keep it from falling. The ensemble ignored the fact that they were scraping the sides of the armoire on the door frame as they struggled to get the armoire through the door. Using the band-aid method instead of going slow and steady, they pushed the armoire into the entryway and set it down as soon as it was all the way in.

The ensemble fell to the floor, panting profusely, halfway done with the task at hand. "Okay… this is… this is too much… smoke break." Keisuke said, panting, as he took out a smoke and lit up. Junichi and Akura followed in suit.

The girls disembarked the train at the station, all immensely excited to see their beloved Tenchi. "We're here!" Sasami exclaimed as she ran off the train.

"Woof, that was a long train ride, but no time to dwell, let's go find Tenchi!" Ryoko said, just as excited, if not more so than Sasami.

Ayeka looked at a map she had with her, "According to this map, the school should be very close, it's within walking distance. Gee, I hope Tenchi doesn't mind us dropping in unannounced like this." She pondered.

"Yeah, maybe you guys should go back, me and Tenchi will be fine here alone." Ryoko said.

"You! You! With all the shenanigans you pull, Tenchi's going to be thrilled that I'm here to keep you in check. So shut your selfish mouth!" Ayeka replied, furiously.

"Enough of this bickering! Let's get going already!" Washu, the voice of reason, demanded. The girls followed her, Ryoko and Ayeka stayed back for just a few moments in order to stare each other down, but they soon followed Washu and the rest of the group.

Back at the mansion, Keisuke along with the other smokers finished up their cigarettes. Everyone was still sweating and red in the face from exhaustion. But Keisuke decided the break had gone on long enough. "Okay, luckily the master bedroom has double doors as well, so we just need to give it one more strong effort like we did before. You guys ready?" The rest of the crew mumbled their unenthusiastic answers and slowly got up from the ground in response. They each got to their respective positions and prepared to lift again.

"Heave! Ho!" They all shouted and lifted the monstrosity. "Okay, everybody walk with me and Tenchi!" Keisuke ordered as they stumbled from the door, further into the house. "Make sure to keep tight handles on your sides, if one of us lets off, we're all gonna give way."

It would seem that Speckles had come back for revenge on Keisuke, as he came running around the corner, barking as if it were his battle cry, headed straight for the left ankle again.

"Gah!" He grunted as he felt the pain of the dog's bite. "Get off of me, you little bastard!" He shouted, losing focus on the armoire. As Keisuke's grip began to wean, the others followed in suit.

"Keisuke! Hold on to your side!" Tenchi panicked as he began to lose grip and footing.

"Son of a bitch! It's too heavy, I can't hold on!" Maiya said, losing her grip, as well.

Trying to get the dog off of his leg, Keisuke's grip slipped off the armoire. With the increased weight, Tenchi's hands slipped off his corner. After that, one by one, a domino effect occurred. Losing their grip next was Akura, then Junichi, and finally Daisuke. The armoire crashed to the floor, creating a schockwave throughout the entire house which caused furniture to jump off the floor and loose items to tip over.

"Keisuke! You asshole, you let go!" Maiya barked.

By this time, Keisuke was more concerned with finding Speckles. "It wasn't me! It was that damn dog, he bit me again! Where is he? I'm gonna wring his neck!" Keisuke exclaimed. After looking around for a few moments and turning up nothing, Keisuke calmed his voice, trying to coax the dog to come to him. "Speckles? Oh, Speckles? Come here, boy!" He called, in an almost sincerely loving tone. He couldn't see the dog, nor could he hear it. "Where is that little bastard? I know he's here somewhere."

The crew looked around everywhere, none could see him. They continued to search with their eyes for a few moments, until they all came to a sudden realization. One by one, their attention drew back to the armoire lying on the floor. Keisuke's expression went from furious, to sudden concern. "Uh. Oh…" He gulped.

Everyone stood silent, staring at the armoire and at each other with relevant fear for the worst.

"Pick it up." Keisuke said, in a dreadful tone.

Everyone gathered on the front side of the armoire and lifted the side up. Keisuke crouched down to get a look underneath. He slowly stood back up with a look of apparent horror upon his expression. He looked at everyone and signaled for them to set the armoire down. Keisuke squinted as everyone stared at him, wondering what the verdict was. Keisuke remained silent.

Everyone gasped.

"Oh, my God!" Maiya exclaimed, practically holding back tears.

"Now just calm down everyone, we can't let Denise find out about this! Is there any pet stores near here?" Keisuke asked in a panic.

"Keisuke, you heartless bastard, you just killed her dog and now you're gonna try and cover it up?" Daisuke scolded.

"What do you mean _I _killed the dog!" Keisuke asked, defensively.

"Yoo! Hoo! We're back!" Denise's voice rang from outside of the door.

Everyone's heads turned to the front door.

"Oh no!" Keisuke panicked. "Not a word from anyone!"

Denise and Fumiko came through the front door, "Wow, you guys have really been working hard today, you even got my armoire inside!"

Everyone suddenly bursted out with nervous laughter.

"Yup, yup, we sure have." Tenchi said.

"Yup, nothing but hard work all day." Junichi concurred.

Denise seemed to be a bit confused by everyone's strange behavior, but let the feeling pass. "Hmm…" She soon cheered up again, "Where's Speckles? Speckles! Come here, baby! I bought a new collar for you! It's your favorite color!" She called for her dog. With no answer, she became a little worried, "Has anyone seen Speckles around?" She asked.

The sweat ran down everyone's brows, the nervous laughter again erupted.

"Uh… Speckles? He should be around here somewhere... Speckles! Here, boy! Heh. Heh." Keisuke replied.

Tenchi's girls had arrived on campus and followed the address all the way to the mansion, Ayeka double-checked the address. "Yup, this is it." She said, inspecting the place.

"Wow, nice digs." Ryoko said, impressed by the house's size. "Well, let's not keep Tenchi waiting any longer." The girls all moseyed into the house, which already had the front door open. "We're here!" Ryoko announced, enthusiastically.

Everyone in the houses' attention turned to the newly arrived guests.

Tenchi gaped, "R-Ryoko? Ayeka? Girls!" He exclaimed, shocked. "What the heck are you guys doing here?"

Ryoko rushed to Tenchi's side and wrapped her arms around Tenchi, practically squeezing the life out of him. He he let out a huge grunt in response.

"Why, we're the newest students admitted to Hanayama University, Tenchi!" Ryoko answered.

"What?" Tenchi's face went sour.

Ayeka also went to Tenchi's side and pulled Ryoko off of him, "Yes, I hope you don't mind, Lord Tenchi, but Washu used her computer to manipulated the school's admissions, which means we get to be together for the next four years!" She informed him.

"Uh… I-I'm not quite sure I understand." Tenchi said.

"It's simple Tenchi, we're living here now." Washu answered.

"Hey! These are the ones you showed me, Tenchi!" Keisuke realized.

Tenchi snickered, "Yup, these are them."

Washu looked around at the mess which was the entryway, "So, why are you guys suffering the move-in process by such primitive means? You should have waited for us, with my technology, I can have all this done in a jiffy!" Washu said before pulling out one of her holographic computers.

The humans of the group looked on in shock and awe, "Did she just pull a computer out of mid-air?" Maiya raised her eyebrow.

Akura's shot wide open with shock and disbelief. "Wha- you... you can't!" He stuttered.

"Now, all I have to do is set the coordinates, and this computer will automatically transport all of the furniture into the most fitting places in the house." She informed everyone.

"Uh… Washu, that's not really such a good idea." Tenchi pointed out, trying to defuse the situation.

But it was too late, with just two strikes of the keyboard, all the furniture seemingly vanished out of thin air and replaced in various locations around the house. Kitchen appliances in the kitchen, chairs and couches in the living room, beds and dressers in the bedrooms and so on.

The humans witnessed the act, unaware of what to make of it. They soon all became awestruck, except for Tenchi and Akura who stood burying their faces in their hands and shaking their heads in disbelief.

"What the hell just happened?" Maiya asked, partially startled.

"Well… it's kind of a complicated story." Tenchi said, squinting and scratching his head with anxiety.

With all the furniture out of the room, Denise, like the others took a look around, it was then she discovered the dark secret her roommates had been hiding. Taken back to the crisis at hand, everyone realized that Denise had just laid eyes on her dog, Speckles, flattened like a pancake in the middle of the room. Denise dealt an ear-piercing scream at the sight, then promptly fainted. Fumiko immediately crouched down to aid her friend, "Denise! Denise!" She cried, trying to wake her fallen friend.

Everyone stood in silence at the spectacle for a few moments.

"I take it we came at a bad time..." Washu quipped.

A funeral service for Speckles was held at sundown in the backyard with everyone in attendance, dressed in black. Denise, having woken up from earlier, was crying on Fumiko's shoulder.

Keisuke stood by in a guilty and uncomfortable silence.

Tenchi performed the service, donning his Shinto Priests' robe from his old shrine days. "_Because I have loved life, I shall have no sorrow in death'..._ As human beings and other sentient lifeforms, we often ponder our own mortality with dread. But Speckles, he was a dog... and though we will all miss him dearly, we shouldn't grieve for him, but grieve for ourselves... Speckles may have lived a short life, but it was a full one... one that few of us will ever have the luxury of... and one that we should all aspire to.

Let our sorrow wane and our memories soar..." Tenchi concluded as he and rest of the congregation put their hands together in bowing silence.

Daisuke walked over to Tenchi, carrying a small shoebox which he, in turn, handed to him. Tenchi took the box and placed it in the small hole they had dug. Maiya, too, brought a grocery bag fill with miscellaneous items to Tenchi.

"For his burial, we will leave him with a number of items, in which he held so dearly in life..." He recited each item as he removed them from the bag and dropped them into the burial, "His favorite chew toy... a box of Snausages, which were his favorite treat... various photos of him alongside his beloved owner, Denise... and lastly, an assortment of his favorite doggie clothes which he so loved to dress up in."

Tenchi finished placing all the items into the burial, then kneeled down and grabbed a handful of soil, "Now, if you'd all please bow your heads for a moment of silence." He said as he sprinkled dust over the burial.

After the moment of silence ended, Tenchi moved over to the side, making way for Junichi, who held an acoustic guitar. "And now for a rendition of Speckles favorite song by our friend Junichi as requested by his dear owner, Denise..." Tenchi prepped the crowd.

Junichi stood in front of the burial with his guitar as he strummed a few chords and began to sing...

"_Tonight I want all of you tonight_

_Give me everything tonight_

_For all we know we might not get tomorrow_

_Lets do it tonight_

_I will love love you tonight_

_Give me everything tonight_

_For all we know we might not get tomorrow_

_Lets do it tonight"_

Everyone stood silently as Junichi continued his song while Tenchi and Daisuke used their shovels to fill in the grave. Between crying immensely, Denise kept shooting Keisuke dirty looks throughout the service, Keisuke couldn't help but notice.

_After the service, Keisuke, Tenchi, and Akura did their best to brief everyone on the situation at hand in the house's entryway. _They took it quite well...

"So… there is life on other planets." Maiya said.

"Lots of life. Considering you're from a developing planet that hasn't been inducted into the rest of the universe, you wouldn't know anything about it. Quite frankly, you'd normally be just a small insignificant spec on the whole spectrum, but because of what your planet possesses, you're a very important commodity to Jurai and the Galaxy Police. Both institutions have done their best to keep this planet safe from any natural galactic disasters or contact with alien races." Akura explained.

"The Rock of Beryllos, huh? I don't get it, if Earth has been the location of the Rock all this time, how come none of my machines have picked up on it? I'm in possession of the most sophisticated technology in the universe." Washu inquired.

"Well, Jurai and Galaxy Police have both been very persistence in blocking any knowledge of the Rock's location. Perhaps your technology isn't quite as advanced as you thought, since others have been able to pick up on it." Akura replied.

Washu got into Akura's face about this offense, "Hey! Don't think you can insult me! Do you know who you're talking to here?" She barked.

"Yes, I'm quite familiar with all of you. Washu, perhaps the greatest scientific mind in all of the universe. Then we have Ryoko, the infamous space pirate, Ayeka and Sasami, aside from Tenchi, each next in line to inherit Jurai's royal throne. And, of course, Kiyone and Mihoshi, two of the finest detectives in the entire Galaxy Police Force. You're quite a group of celebrities living all under one roof, along with Tenchi. Looks like that's not about to change any time soon." Akura responded.

"Woah, woah, woah, this is too much! Not only is there life on other planets, but I'm renting from two of them, and our house is sitting on the most powerful object in the universe. Do you expect us to keep quiet about this?" Maiya said.

"Yes, we do, in fact. It's too late to change what has already happened, but now that you've witnessed what's going on, there's no turning back. Consider yourselves to have a great honor, in one night you've become more advanced than the rest of your entire primitive planet, and now you're gonna have to cooperate. If you refuse, then as representatives of this sector of Galaxy Police jurisdiction, Mihoshi and I will have to take you into custody. That means you'll never be able to return to your home planet under any circumstances, ever again." Kiyone promptly answered.

"Well, since the green-haired broad puts in that way..." Keisuke said.

Maiya gave him a dirty look, "Pathetic humans? Just 'cause these jokers say you're a prince, doesn't mean crap. First of all, there's no way you can be a prince. You're too stupid, too fat, and too stupid." She said.

"That's strike three, bitch! Akura! As my royal subject, I order you to seize her at once!" Keisuke demanded.

Akura stood motionless, "Shut up, Keisuke." He scoffed.

"See, even your own royal bodyguard won't listen to you, good luck running an empire." Maiya quipped.

Keisuke sat down and pouted.

"I don't know, man. What if we don't wanna be a part of this? I don't know if I can handle being responsible for the greatest power in the universe." Junichi said, concerned.

"Well, you're gonna have to, I'm afraid. Now that you know the secret, you're gonna need to stay here, at least so we can keep an eye on your whereabouts." Akura replied.

"But that ain't fair!" Junichi said.

"Life's not fair, kid, there's your first lesson in college." Kiyone replied.

Keisuke noticed Denise, once again giving him that dirty look. "Okay, I give up, what the hell is wrong with you, Denise?"

"Just the thought I'll have to be living under the same roof as you, dog killer!" Denise replied, agrily.

Keisuke was taken aback, "Dog killer? Where the hell do you get off calling me that?" He asked, defensively.

"Oh, I don't know, maybe because you killed my _dog_!" Denise replied. "

You have a lot of nerve accusing me of that! It was an accident! You know who you really should be blaming? Yourself, for making us carry that damn armoire!" Keisuke exclaimed.

"Hey, you can't blame us for the killing the dog, either! After all, you let go of your corner first." Daisuke added.

"Oh, so everyone's gonna team up against me now, huh? Well, forget it, I ain't buying it. There's no way I'm gonna let you all guilt me into believing I'm the one at fault!" Keisuke replied.

"Don't you try to play innocent! You always hated Speckles, you even said earlier that you were gonna kill him!" Denise said.

"How the hell would you know that, you've been gone all day?" Keisuke asked. "Maiya told me." Denise replied.

Keisuke's eyes widened and went straight to Maiya, "You bitch!" He shouted. "See? I knew it! Dog killer! Dog killer!" Denise repeatedly shouted.

"That's it! I don't have to take this from my own tenants! All of your rents are raised! I'm going out to smoke!" Keisuke shouted as he marched out the front door, slamming it on his way out.

The remaining members of the party sat in the living room in uncomfortable silence, until Washu broke the mold. "Well, I'm gonna go get my room set up, any closets around here not in use?" She asked. "Yeah, you can use the broom closet, it's the fourth door on the left, upstairs." Tenchi replied.

"Alright. Sasami, could you give me a hand, real quick?" Washu asked.

"Sure, Washu!" Sasami answered cheerfully. The two left and went upstairs.

Tenchi gave an over enthusiastic yawn, possibly trying to escape the situation, "Well, it's been a long day for all of us, what do you say everyone hits they hay? We've got class tomorrow, after all." He said.

Everyone else got up and proceeded to head to their respective rooms to end the long day. Tenchi stayed behind with Akura. "Jesus, I can tell this whole ordeal's going to be one headache after another, glad I don't have to live here." Akura said. "Well, I guess I'd better get going too. See ya later, Tenchi." He said as he warped out of the house.

Tenchi, being the last one remaining, also retreated to his room.

Tenchi put on his pajamas and got ready for bed, he took a peek out his window and saw Keisuke, still out front smoking a cigarette. He decided to go talk with him. Keisuke was standing on the curb in front of the house, pacing back and forth, smoking his cigarette.

"Hey, Keisuke, how's it going?" Tenchi asked.

Keisuke sighed, "Hey, Tenchi. Just thinking. I can't believe everyone's blaming me for killing Speckles, the damn dog bit my leg, the armoire slipped, what the hell was I supposed to do?"

"Well, I wouldn't worry about it too much, sure it was a tragedy, people are gonna look for someone to blame, but I'm sure it'll all blow over with time." Tenchi replied.

The two stood in the moonlight for a moment in silence, Tenchi looked over at the front door where he saw the Greek symbol 'Sigma' sitting on the top of the doorjamb that hadn't been there previously. "Hey, where'd that come from?" Tenchi asked.

Keisuke looked over, "Oh, that? I figured this house needed something to stand-out, I figure we're all close enough to a fraternity, so I chose 'Sigma', always thought it was the coolest letter in the Greek alphabet." He replied.

"Really? I can't believe that symbol hadn't been taken yet." Tenchi said.

"It was, I stole it from the 'Kaph-Sigma' house just down the street." Keisuke replied.

"Oh… I see…" Tenchi said, awkwardly.

"Yeah… I've been drinking a little." Keisuke said.

"Hmm… Well, then, uh… good night." Tenchi said, then turned around to walk back into the house.

As Keisuke remained outside, smoking his cigarette, he noticed a couple of security guards escorting some guy off of school grounds.

"But I swear, I'm supposed to be a student here! I _have_ the acceptance letter!" The detainee cried as the security guards dragged him down the street

"Yeah, sure buddy. I know a lot of guys in prison who know how to forge documents too." One of the security guards scoffed in response.

"And don't think you're the first, either, pal. We've had to haul off five other jerks today trying to pull off the same scam." The other security guard added.

Keisuke watched as the scene unfolded, then put his cigarette out on the ground and walked back into the house, wondering what was to come next for the residents at Sigma House.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter Three: Left To My Own Devices**

It was yet another beautiful Wednesday at Sigma House. Keisuke awoke to breathe in the fresh morning air, it was about 2:30 PM. He sat down at his computer for a few minutes before a bout of frustration took ahold of him. He began to click his mouse furiously and smash at the keyboard in a fit of rage and desperation. „Piece of junk! You're gonna do this to me?" He growled at the inanimate object.

After a couple more clicks of the mouse and strokes of the keys, Keisuke gave one final growl before he shot up out of his chair, grabbed the computer tower, yanking it from its plugs and carried it over to his window. „I'll teach you to freeze on me, you piece of junk!" He said, as he opened the window and tossed the computer out.

The success of launch sent the tower hurdling down the two-story drop and crashing into the ground, leaving every piece entirely demolished. Keisuke looked down on the wreckage with twitchy eyes and a scowl. "Shit!" He shouted to himself.

Meanwhile, Washu was busy in her laboratory working with her computer on God knows what.

Keisuke let himself in, cradling the remains of his once computer. "Hey... Washu?" He spoke nervously.

"What can I do for you, Keisuke?" She replied without ever turning her attention away from the computer.

"I threw my computer out of the window again, could you fix it for me?" He asked.

Washu replied with an irritated sigh and paused for a few second to wipe the sweat off her brows. Then, with a couple of key strokes, set off an automated reaction within the room. Two of her miniature robot helpers came down from the ceiling, snatched the computer from Keisuke's arms, took it to what appeared to be an operating table and began work on it.

Washu got up from her computer to stretch her legs, apparently she had been working for hours.

Keisuke just stood still in silence, until he attempted to engage Washu in conversation; "So... what'cha doin'?" He asked with childlike curiosity.

"Trying to figure out the mystery of our little Rock friend..." Washu replied.

"Oh really, and what have you found?" Keisuke asked.

"Quite interesting, if I do say so myself..." Washu replied, going back to her computer. "You see, the nano-scanners I've sent down there show that the Rock isn't composed of electrons or any other subatomic particles that are present in all other matter, but it's somehow responding with everything, and I do mean EVERYTHING. Do you know what this could mean?"

"Um... yeah?" Keisuke said, a little out of his league.

Washu backed up from her computer and sighed, "You don't know what I'm talking about, do you?"

"Uh... you said electrons, so that mean it has something to do with electricity, right?" Keisuke asked.

"Have a seat Keisuke..." Washu said as she materialized a chair for him. "Are you familiar with quantum entanglement?" She asked.

"Well, I, uh-"

"Okay, okay, dumb question." Washu interrupted. "Lemme try and explain: this universe was created when the Big Bang occurred billions of years ago. Since then it was discovered that all electrons throughout the universe have this ability to communicate from anywhere. Faster than light, faster than anything, without the use of time travel. Do you understand?"

"Not a word, but go on..." Keisuke replied.

"Well, Keisuke, in the end it was discovered that 'space' is only an illusion created by our obscured perception, when really it's all matter held together by gravity, the bi-product created by our expanding universe. I was one of the first to discover this phenomenon, twenty-thousand years ago, sorry to say your planet hasn't caught on quite yet. But it's the reason we have space-time travel, it's how I materialized that chair you're sitting in." Washu went on, before turning her attention back to her computer. "But in twenty-thousand years, no one has been able to find the God particle which sparked the flame to existence in this and every other universe... I think this Rock of Beryllos might hold the answer, and GOD DAMN IT, I intend to find it!" Washu began a crazed tangent, "As the greatest scientific mind ever to have lived, it's my duty... no, my purpose! I will succeed!"

Keisuke snuck away as Washu gestured around like a tyrannical dictator.

Tenchi was busy in the kitchen fixing himself a snack in-between classes. "I wish people wouldn't leave the milk out..." He grumbled to himself as he took a carton of milk that had been laying out back to the fridge. As he closed the fridge door, he was startled to see Keisuke standing there in front of him, as he let out a subtle gasp of surprise.

"How's it going, Tenchi?" Keisuke asked, with a smile upon his face.

Tenchi took his snack and walked over to the table to eat, "Bad, I've got a biology exam in fifteen minutes and I haven't eaten a thing all day." He replied. "Say, aren't you suppose to be in class right now?" He then asked.

"Um... what day is it?" Keisuke asked.

"It's Wednesday." Tenchi sighed. "We've only been here for three weeks and the admission's board is already talking about putting you on academic probation."

"How would you know that?" Keisuke asked.

"Akura told me, he's been watching you pretty closely, you know." Tenchi replied.

Keisuke took a seat at the table. "Bah, I'm not afraid of that asshole." He grumbled. "So Tenchi, what do you say about cutting this exam and you and me go cruise the campus for babes?"

"Are you crazy? Look, you may not care about your education here, but some of us would like to get their money's worth. Besides, I'm not about to waste all this studying I've done." Tenchi replied.

"Hmm... so what is the test about?" Keisuke asked in a deceivingly enthusiastic tone.

"Well, we're supposed to put together various forms of traits Mendel was using in his studies of-" Tenchi began to explain before his watch caught his eye, "Gah! I'm gonna be late." Tenchi wolfed down his snack, grabbed his book bag and went running for the exit. "Gotta go, see ya later, Keisuke!" He shouted as he ran out the door.

Keisuke remained seated at the table in a fit of disappointment.

In the living room, Maiya was found curled up on the couch reading a book. Keisuke snuck up behind her and snatched the book from her hands, "What's up, egghead?" He asked rhetorically.

"Hey!" Maiya exclaimed in response to his rude behavior.

Keisuke examined the book, "Ayn Rand? What are you, some kind of communist?" He asked.

Maiya sighed with her hands buried in her face, "Don't you have an extra-large pizza you should be shoveling into your face right now?" She asked.

Keisuke ignored her insulting comments and took a seat on the couch next to her, "Hey, what do you say we get out of here and go do something?" He asked.

Maiya scoffed, "Like I'd ever go out with you, butterball."

Keisuke scoffed in response, "Don't flatter yourself, poindexter, nobody else is home."

Maiya grabbed the book back from Keisuke, "I don't have time for your bullshit today." She got up from her seat. "Just because you're too stupid to show up for any of your classes, doesn't mean the rest of us have to suffer." She finished as she left the living room, leaving Keisuke alone once again.

Much to the annoyance of both parties, Ryoko and Ayeka had ended up taking the same advanced physics course together. Their professor, Ms. Ito, was currently copying an equation down on the board, "Okay, so we've discovered gravity, we understand how it works, but we don't know why. Being human, the next logical step is to kill it." She finished copying down the equation and pointed to it. "Let's see if any of you read your chapters last night, who can tell me what this is?" She looked around the class for volunteers.

Ayeka, who had taken herself a seat front and center, was the first to raise her hand.

Ms. Ito acknowledged, "Yes, Miss Ayeka?"

Ayeka stood tall and proud, "That is the gravitational potential energy equation, ma'am. It's the equation used to calculate escape velocity."

"Very good, Ayeka. At first I thought you were a little young to be taking this class, perhaps I might be teaching the next Hawking." Ms. Ito commented.

Ayeka blushed profusely in a fit of flattery, "Oh, professor..." She laughed.

"Since your on a roll, can you explain this equation to the rest of the class." Ms. Ito asked.

Without hesitation, Ayeka began on a long and detailed report of the equation and its functions.

Meanwhile, Ryoko hid in the shadows, seated top-left in the classroom. She was less interested in the class and more concerned with doodling caricatures of Ayeka as a hideous monster with numerous stinks lines protruding from her person.

Class ended and the exhausted students stampeded out the doors, except for Ayeka who carefully packed away her school supplies into her book bag. Ryoko waited just outside the door for her, ready for an ambush. As she walked out the door, Ayeka saw Ryoko out of the corner of her eye, but ignored her and continued on her way, Ryoko followed in pursuit, "Hey, Ayeka!" She spoke in a suspiciously friendly tone.

"What do you want?" She answered, openly annoyed.

"So, our first test is next week and I was just wondering..." Ryoko inquired.

"No, you may not copy my notes!" Ayeka promptly replied.

"Oh, c'mon Ayeka, you can't let me fall behind now." Ryoko whined.

"Maybe if you'd pay attention instead of using the class as naptime, you'd have your own notes to study." Ayeka snarled.

"I wasn't sleeping, I was just resting my eyes." Ryoko said.

"We could all hear you snoring from the front row." Ayeka responded.

Ryoko put her arm over Ayeka's shoulder in a friendly manner, "Okay, okay... how bout this; you let me copy your notes for this test and I'll let you copy mine next time." Ryoko dealt.

Ayeka scoffed, "I'd be better off copying the notes of a chimpanzee. Now stop wasting my time!" She said as she shrugged Ryoko's arm off, then stormed away without noticing the large, bold _Kick Me _now taped to her back.

Sasami's calculus class was in the middle of its first exam. The teacher was using this opportunity of silence to catch-up on some crossword puzzles, which had the majority of his attention at the time so he failed to notice half the class was peaking over Sasami's shoulders. She didn't seem to notice.

After a few minutes or so of diligent work, Sasami put her pencil down and stood up. "Professor! I'm finished!" She exclaimed cheerfully.

Everyone who had been copying off her frantically shot back to their own seats before the teacher's eyes were off his crossword puzzle. "Oh... uh, very good Sasami, you may go now." The professor replied placidly.

Sasami smiled, gathered her things and left.

"I tell you, Fumiko, this whole thing is driving me crazy." Denise said to her dear friend as the two walked the hallways of the mathematics building.

"Well, it is just one class..." Fumiko replied, hesitantly.

"How could you say that? You and I have been in the same classes together since we were freshmen in high school, how could this happen?" Denise whined.

"Um... just lucky I guess." Fumiko replied.

The two stopped at Denise's classroom, "It still really sucks, though, do you have any idea how boring this class is?" Denis pouted.

Fumiko smiled, "Look at the bright side, we only have two semesters until our requirements are met, then we'll be back on schedule." Fumiko consoled her friend. "Plus, since I'm taking the class this semester, it'll be a breeze for you when you get in next semester." She added.

"That is a good point." Denise agreed. Afterward, she caught her friend in a strong embrace, completely catching Fumiko by surprise and practically squeezing the life out her. "Oh Fumiko, you're my best friend in the whole world!" She exclaimed as she squeezed tighter. She let go then went into her classroom. "Meet you back at the house, love you!" She added as she disappeared into the room.

Fumiko stood by for a few moments before heading around the corner. She stopped when she noticed a barrage of students walking into another classroom. She seemed surprised, but followed them all inside. She stepped through the door and looked around to see that most of the seats had been taken already until her eye was caught by Daisuke, who waved her over to an empty seat next to him. She paused for a few moments, then hesitantly made her way to the vacant seat next to Daisuke.

"I didn't know you were in this class, good thing, I couldn't stand being trapped in here alone with all these math geeks." Daisuke tried to engage with conversation.

Fumiko acted oddly towards Daisuke, she spoke in an annoyed and defensive tone, "I hope you didn't offer this seat just to copy off of me."

Daisuke paused with confusion for a second, before he tried again to lighten things up again, "Well, actually I offered the seat because there's no babes in here, but I guess you'll do." He joked and snickered until he quieted down, sensing that she didn't find this funny. He cleared his throat, "Can you believe this? The professor didn't show up for the first two weeks. If any of us pulled that, we'd be cut."

"Are you one of those jocks who love to hear themselves talk?" Fumiko asked.

"Sorry, just trying to lighten you up a bit." Daisuke defended himself.

"And what makes you think that I need to be lightened up?" Fumiko asked, defensively.

"Well, no offense. I just mean – uh – you know, it must suck not being with your friend Denise." Daisuke said.

Fumiko scoffed, "It's not like we're siamese twins."

"Well, I didn't mean it that way or anything... so... did you at least get to sit in on Denise's class these past couple of weeks?" Daisuke asked.

"Not that it's any of your business, but I do enjoy doing other things in my spare time." Fumiko replied.

"Really? Like what?" Daisuke asked.

Fumiko didn't get to answer as the professor finally arrived, "Yeah, I know, I'm the worst teacher ever, because of my absence, you've all missed out on invaluable information. But even if you haven't learned any math, you at least now know to never eat at Bobobo's Sushi." The class had a good laugh at this.

After her class, Denise walked through the campus, headed back for Sigma House. As she walked, she began to hear a loud, obnoxious sound, which was growing and growing in volume. The sound was of a Harley-Davidson motorcycle engine as Junichi and his bike pulled up next to Denise. "Goin' my way, babe? How bout' a lift?" Junichi asked.

Denise kept walking, refusing to make eye-contact, "Take a hike, daddy-o." Denise replied.

"Ah, don't be that way, we share a pad, why not share a ride?" Junichi reasoned.

Denise stopped and finally made eye-contact with Junichi, she flashed him a deceiving smile, "Look, I can understand how being born among the most submissive people on the planet would lead you to this 'rebel without a cause' act, but as an ambassador of the US, I can tell you the whole thing is 'played'."

Junichi snickered, "Meh, we all got our poison. I dig on the classics. How bout you and your magic mirror, what's her name? Fumiko?"

Denise shot Junichi a quick sneer, "And just what do you mean by that?"

Junichi lit himself a cigarette, "Why don't you ask her? And don't forget to pull the string on her back."

"Listen, I don't know what you're trying to say here, but I do know that I don't have to pay attention to the ramblings of some wannabe greaser who can't get his bop lingo straight!" Denise replied.

"Watch the red, babe, bad for the complexion." Junichi finished as he burned out, kicking dust up into the air as he sped away.

Meanwhile, Kiyone and Mihoshi were attending their world history class. Today the teacher kept the students busy through book work while she was busy grading papers, keeping the noise in the room at a minimum.

Kiyone and Mihoshi sat side by side, Mihoshi seemed to be struggling with the assignment as told by the sweat running down her brow and the distraught, frantic look she expressed. She tapped Kiyone on the shoulder with her pen, "Psst, Kiyone..." She whispered.

Kiyone tried to ignore her, concentrating on her own work.

Mihoshi again attempted to get Kiyone's attention, this time by grabbing the sleeve of her shirt and yanking it, "Kiyone, I can't find the answer to this question. Do you know it?" She asked.

Kiyone sighed, "No..." she replied in a solemn tone.

"How bout this one?" Mihoshi asked again.

"No." Kiyone replied again, this time sounding more agitated.

"What about this one?"

"Quiet Mihoshi!" Kiyone exclaimed, garnering the attentions of the teacher.

"Hey, silence in the classroom, I said!" The teacher exclaimed, scowling at Kiyone.

Kiyone laughed nervously, "Sorry about that, ma'am." She stuttered.

Once the commotion calmed down, Kiyone threw Mihoshi a dirty look, "See what you did?" She snarled.

"I'm sorry, this is just so hard..." Mihoshi whined.

"Just be quiet." Kiyone ordered.

Silence once again took over the room, but Mihoshi continued to struggle with the assignment. She began to whine and moan to herself, much to the annoyance of Kiyone, but since she wasn't directly speaking to her, she just tried to endure and ignore. But unfortunately it wasn't long before Mihoshi requested Kiyone's assistance again, "Um... Kiyone?"

"Whaaaat?" She grunted.

"I need help with this question."

"Look it up in the index, Mihoshi!" Kiyone exclaimed, once again catching the teacher's eye.

"Miss Makibi, is there a problem?" She asked.

"Um... no. Sorry, ma'am. It won't happen again." She assured her, flustered.

"It'd better not!"

Kiyone turned her attention back to Mihoshi, "Damn it, Mihoshi. Stop getting us in trouble." She scorned.

"I'm so sorry, Kiyone!" Mihoshi cried.

The two finally turned back to their own work. Things seemed to be going smoothly for a few moments before Kiyone's Galaxy Police watch went off, sending an obnoxious, high-pitched beeping noise soaring through the classroom. Kiyone scrambled to switch it off. She looked around only to notice the teacher along with the entire class staring her down. Perspiration began to fall down her brow, she looked over to the teacher, "Ma'am, could Mihoshi and I please be excused?" She asked.

The teacher sighed, "If that means there'll be no more disruptions, then by all means." She replied.

"Thank you, very much." Kiyone bowed, then gathered her things.

Mihoshi, apparently oblivious to the events around her, had her nose buried into the textbook. "So... that means the answer is somewhere on page seventy-four..." She said to herself before being yanked out of her seat and dragged out of the classroom by Kiyone.

Keisuke strolled through campus with his head held low and solemn look on his face, kicking a small rock as he walked. "This sucks, everybody's working today, nobody wants to play with me..." He moaned to himself. He stopped and sat down on the curb. "I'm so bored..." He sighed. He looked around noticing the campus library just across the street, he studied the building for a few seconds before shooting back up to his feet, as if an epiphany just hit him. "That's it! It's time to stop screwing around, I'm never going to accomplish anything by sitting here like a bum!" He ran across the street into the library, bursting through the doors and taking a look around. He saw one of the librarians at the front desk, stamping slips for returned books and marched up to her.

She looked up to him, "Hello, young man, is there anything I can do for you?" She asked.

He put his hand in his pocket and pulled out a few bills, "Could I get some change?" He asked.

After the librarian broke his bills, he left campus for the entertainment district, where he found a video arcade. He had the place mostly to himself seeing as most of their costumers were in school at this time. Most of his money had been sunk into this overhead space shooter game, "Oh yeah, baby... you like it like that, don't you?" He spoke suggestively to the machine as fired away at alien space cruisers set on destroying the Earth. "C'mon, baby, show me the magic, say my name! Say... my... name..." He said before his ship was destroyed by a stray photon beam prompting the _Game Over _screen to flash and the sound to chime: "Loser, loser, loser..." repeatedly.

Keisuke turned out his pockets. Finding he was out of money, he left the arcade and wandered around the entertainment district until he found a manga store, to where he strolled in and began to read some of the store's merchandise.

Akura entered Sigma House and looked around the manor to find nobody home, he stood in the hallway, "Hello? Anybody home?" He called out to no answer.

Tenchi came through the front door a few moments later, finished with his classes for the day. He saw Akura standing there, "Hey, Akura, what brings you around?" He greeted.

"I'm looking for Keisuke, you seen him lately?" Akura asked.

"Well, he was here earlier." Tenchi replied.

Ryo-Oki came hopping down the stairs to greet Tenchi, hopping into his arms and letting out an enthusiastic "Meow!".

"Hey, Ryo-Oki." He laughed.

Maiya then entered the house through the front door, "Hey Tenchi, hey Akura." She greeted them.

"Maiya, have you seen Keisuke around? Akura's been looking for him." Tenchi asked.

"Did you check the kitchen?" She joked.

"Yes, he's nowhere in the house. Do you guys have any idea where he could be?" Akura asked.

"Well, he doesn't have any money, or a job, or friends, or a life. You've got me." Maiya replied.

Ryo-Oki jumped out of Tenchi's arms and onto the bottom newel post of the stairs, drawing attention to herself. "Meow!" She said.

Akura looked at her, "Ryo-Oki, do you know where Keisuke is?" He asked.

"Meow!" She replied, before leaping off the newel post and hopping to the front door.

"I think she wants you to follow her." Tenchi said.

"Okay, lead the way Ryo-Oki." Akura said.

"Meow!" Ryo-Oki responded, then leaped through the front door as Akura followed her.

Keisuke was still busy helping himself to some _light_ at the manga store until the shop owner was finally annoyed enough to approach him. She grabbed the book from his hands, "Hey, bum, this ain't no charity, ya hear?"

"Hey, I was gonna buy it!" He reasoned.

"Bullshit, you've gone through ten books already. Do you have any idea how hard people work to get these things published only to have punks like you take advantage of them? Of course, you don't. You wouldn't know the first the about work, would ya?" She scorned him.

Keisuke just stood back and snickered, "Listen, lady, just because you chose to sell a product only an idiot would pay for, doesn't give you the right to talk to me like that." He scoffed.

"Why, you! That's it, get out of my store and don't come back!" She exclaimed.

"Why don't you make me, grandma?" Keisuke challenged.

"Fine!" She replied. "Dano, get over here!" She called over to a boy who was busy sweeping on the other side of the store. The boy set aside his broom and immediately walked over to the scene. The shopkeeper pointed out Keisuke to the boy, "Get his fat butt out of my store!" She ordered.

"Please come with me, sir." Dano asked politely.

Keisuke examined the young man who was decked out with a pair of thick Coke-bottle glasses, was about 5'5" and couldn't have been more than 120 pounds. He began to crack up at the site, "Okay, okay, but before you try anything, just know I happen to be a level fifty elf with invulnerability to pixie dust." He said then went into a fit of uncontrollable laughter.

Dano and the shopkeeper stared at Keisuke for a few moments before they looked back at each other and the shopkeeper nodded her head at Dano. Dano took a step forward towards Keisuke and sent a quick jab to his left kidney.

"Gah!" Keisuke grunted as he fell to his knees.

With Keisuke now groveling on the floor, Dano grabbed his right arm, twisted it around his back and dragged him to the back door. The back door lead to an alleyway where all the stores kept their trash cans. Dano threw open the door and tossed Keisuke into a group of garbage cans, knocking most of them down in the process.

Keisuke laid there for a few moments, still feeling the pain in his side. He struggled back to his feet before taking a seat on top of a still standing trash receptacle. He pulled out a pack of cigarettes from his pocket and lit one up, "Sucker punching little dork..." He mumbled to himself.

He took a few drags of his cigarette before hearing a quite "Meow." echo in the alleyway. He looked up to see Ryo-Oki standing on the edge of the dumpster.

He took another drag off his cigarette, "Well, hey there, Ryo-Oki, what brings you out here?" He asked, rhetorically. He sat smoking his cigarette for a few minutes, examining Ryo-Oki. He shot up from his seat and grabbed her, causing her to let out a slight grunt. "You're coming with me." He said.

Next thing Ryo-Oki knew, she was being crushed by a group of high school girls who were holding her, petting her, and generally tossing her around like a rag-doll. "Oh! I wanna hold her!" One girl exclaimed. "No! I'm next!" Another one replied. "She likes me the best!" Yet another one argued.

Keisuke cut in and took Ryo-Oki into his arms, "Now, settle down ladies, I think she needs a break." He said.

"So what is it called again?" One of the girls asked.

"A cabbit." Keisuke replied.

"Oh! How cute!" The group of girls exclaimed.

"Yes, she's one of the last her kind. I found her in the Siberian forest while working for the Peace Corp. She was the runt of her litter. Her mother had to leave her behind in order to save her bigger siblings from poachers. But when I found her, she was just so small, so frightened... I couldn't leave her there, so I took her in myself." Keisuke squeezed Ryo-Oki tightly in his arms and began to shed crocodile tears as he sold his sob story.

The girls all began to tear up, buying Keisuke's tall tale, "Oh, you're so kind!" One of the girls said as she gazed into Keisuke's eyes.

Keisuke was basking in his glorious idea before the rest of his plan was cut short by Akura snuck up behind him and yanked him up by his shoulders. "Does your depravity know no bounds!" Akura scorned Keisuke before dropping him back on his feet. He snatched Ryo-Oki from his arms, then proceeded to address Keisuke's crowd, "Sorry, girls, show's over."

"Aww!" The group of girls whined before Akura dragged Keisuke around the corner to a less populated area.

"What the hell has gotten into you, don't you realize Ryo-Oki is a Jurian state secret?" Akura continued to berate Keisuke.

"Hey man, what's there to being a prince if you can't enjoy some of the perks? Hey, if you promise to play along, I'll let you take first pick!" Keisuke bargained.

"That's it! I've had enough of watching you make a mockery of my home world! I'm not about to let the next heir of the Genissant Royal Crown become... well... YOU!" Akura exclaimed. He then turned his attention to Ryo-Oki. "Ryo-Oki! Take us to Yosho!" He commanded before tossing her into the air prompting her to become her spaceship form.

Keisuke looked on in awe as Ryo-Oki transformed, "I didn't know it could do that!" He exclaimed before he and Akura were teleported into the innards of the ship and flown across Japan back to Tenchi's grandfather's shrine.

Yosho was in the middle of teatime when he heard a ruckus forming outside. He sat down his cup and went outside to find the wind blowing profusely and Ryo-Oki approaching in the distance. Akura appeared, via teleportation, landing eloquently on his feet. Keiskuke still hadn't quite got the hang of this whole new age space travel thing and was teleported upside down, landing on his face. Ryo-Oki was the last to change form, she immediately ran up to Katzuhiko to greet him. "Why hello there, Ryo-Oki." He said cheerfully.

Akura approached Katzuhiko and bowed before him, "It's been a long time, Master." He greeted him, respectfully.

"It has." Katzuhiko replied as he gave Akura permission to rise.

Keisuke was still stumbling to get on his feet having suffered from a bump on the head and lack of exercise. "Where in the hell are we?" He asked.

Akura looked over to Keisuke, "Keisuke, I would like you to meet Lord Yosho of Jurai. He is Tenchi's grandfather and the swordsman who first instructed me." Akura said.

"You may call me Kazuhiko, everybody here does." Kazuhiko addressed Keisuke.

"Uh, nice to meet you." Keisuke replied.

Kazuhiko approached Keisuke, "So this is the royal heir to Genissant, eh? I'm honored." He said as he bowed before him.

"Don't overdo it, sir." Akura commented.

"So what exactly are we doing here?" Keisuke asked.

Akura chimed in, "Keisuke, if you're going to be the keeper of The Rock of Beryllos and wear the Genissant Royal Crown, we're gonna need to add some structure into your life, which means we need to get you busy. Kazuhiko is known throughout the galaxy as the greatest swordsman who ever lived, he will teach you discipline, respect, and the art of war." He lectured.

"You mean he's gonna teach me how to fight?" Keisuke asked.

"Don't be such a simpleton, he's going to teach you how to be a man! And if you don't start paying him proper respect, I'm going to kick your ass!" Akura augmented.

Kazuhiko interjected himself, "Yes, you carry a great responsibility on your shoulders, Keisuke, and in order to fulfill those responsibilities, you must earn the right to wear the Genissant Royal Crown and protect this universe. It's your birthright and I'm here to help you unlock your full potential."

"But I don't have any potential, ask my Grandpa." Keisuke argued.

Akura walked over to Keisuke and smacked him over the head, "Shut up and unlock your full potential, damn it!" Akura shouted.

Keisuke sighed, "Fine..." He said reluctantly.

"Good, we'll start right away." Kazuhiko said. "Let me just head into the shrine and fetch a few things."

"We're starting right now, but it's so late in the day!" Keisuke whined.

"But if we wait until morning, it'll be even later in the day." Kazuhiko responded then continued into the shrine.

Keisuke glared over at Akura, "I hate you..." He sneered.

"I know." Akura replied.

Kazuhiko came out of the shrine a few minutes later carrying a long wooden stick and another object which was wrapped in a sheet. "I have something for you, Keisuke. Akura left it to my care the day you were born and it was given to him by none other than your mother and father. It's your treasure, your birthright, keep it sacred." Kazuhiko said as he handed the sheathed object to Keisuke who promptly unraveled it to find a very finely crafted cutlass sword. "It was forged in the Genissant Royal Palace especially for you. This will be your weapon, it will be your greatest ally-"

"Yeah, yeah, I know, this weapon will replace my tongue, from now on my poetry will be written in blood... so when do I get to stab some people?" Keisuke interrupted while pulling out cigarette and lighting it.

But before he could get the entire tip lit, he was interrupted as Kazuhiko snatched the cigarette from his mouth and threw it on the floor. Keisuke was in shock and awe, "What the hell did you do that for?" He demanded to know.

"Smoking can be very detrimental to your health, you must be in tip-top shape if you ever want to become a great warrior." Kazuhiko replied.

"But you trained Akura and he smokes like a chimney!" Keisuke argued.

"Do as I say, not as I do." Akura replied as he lit himself a cigarette.

Kazuhiko smiled at Keisuke, "Now let's get started with your first lesson. Do exactly as I tell you: grip your hand tightly over the handle of your sword, then I want you to stretch your arm out to a ninety degree angle."

Keisuke let out an obnoxiously dramatic sigh, then did as he was told.

"Good, now hold it there." Kazuhiko said.

Keisuke held the blade at its ninety degree angle for a few moments, it wasn't long before his arm began to shake, "Uh... how long do I have to do this?" Keisuke ask.

"Until I say to put your arm down." Kazuhiko replied.

Angered and frustrated, Keisuke's arm fell to his side, "Oh, c'mon, what the hell does that mea-"

**whack**

Before Keisuke could finish his sentence, he was blindsided by a smack across the face ,dealt by Kazuhiko and his wooden stick. Keisuke went mute for a few moments in disbelief, "...Did you just hit me with that fucking stick?" He asked.

Kazuhiko snickered, "Correct. This is my disciplinary stick. Every time your arm moves I'm going to whack you in the head with it. Now you'd better hurry and get your arm back up there before I whack you again." He replied.

"Listen, old man, I don't have to take this kind of shit from you, do you hear me-"

**whack**

Keisuke was hit again. But still stubbornly refused to put his arm back up, "If you whack me with that thing one more time-"

**whack**

"OKAY! OKAY!" Keisuke cried, finally putting his arm back into the air. "Are you happy now?" He asked, rhetorically.

"Yes, now just keep it there and we're golden. The purpose of this exercise is so you can learn to perceive your weapon not as a simple tool, but as a part of you. You must master it as you have mastered your own body over the years." Kazuhiko said.

"But I have trouble making it into the toilet sometimes!" Keisuke argued.

Ignoring Keisuke, Kazuhiko turned his attention over to Akura, "So, old friend, how would you like to come into the shrine and have a nice cup of tea?" He asked.

"It'd be a great honor, Master." Akura replied, then the two made their way to the shrine.

"Wait, you're gonna leave me out here alone?" Keisuke asked.

"Swordsmanship is more of an outdoor activity." Katsuhito replied.

"You know I'm just gonna put my arm down as soon as you guys get inside." Keisuke assured.

"If that's what you think." Kaztuhiko replied. Before the two entered the front door of the shrine, Katzuhiko picked up a bucket that was sitting next to it. The inside was filled with smooth, symmetrical stones. Katzuhiko picked one out from the rubble, "These stones will be filling in for the stick while Akura and I have our tea. We'll be sitting next the window, right there; if I see your arm move, I'm gonna chuck one of these stones at you." Katzuhiko said, then threw a demonstrative stone at Keisuke's head, hitting him square between the eyes. The two then continued their entrance into the shrine.

"And don't think you can pull a fast one, this man has eyes like an eagle." Akura added before he shut the front door.

While Keisuke stood outside in the cold, Katzuhiko and Akura made themselves nice and cozy at the table over a hot pot of tea.

"So, you think it was space pirates, then?" Katsuhito asked Akura.

"Must've been, nobody else uses drones like that." Akura replied.

"Perhaps they're being employed by somebody, then. No mere swashbucklers could have uncovered the boy's true identity. At least not this early in the game."

"Either way, it's a big problem. If there's a conspiracy here, I doubt we're going to find a source, especially when we're dealing with pirates." Akura took a sip of tea.

Katsuhito looked out the window to Keisuke, "Funny, all this fuss over one boy."

"Yeah... funny." Akura replied sarcastically.

Katsuhito took a sip of tea, "His true identity was kept a secret from every soul in the universe except his parents, the Juraian royal counsel, and you. Must've been a great honor to have had that responsibility given to you."

"Oh, yeah..."

"Hmm... I sense a hint of conflict in your tone." Katsuhito inquired.

Akura looked Katsuhito in his eyes, "About what?" He asked.

"I've never fancied myself psychic. I was actually hoping you'd tell me." Katsuhito replied.

Akura leaned back and stretched his arm, "Okay, you wanna know my problem?' He asked, rhetorically, then pointed outside the window at Keisuke. "That's it."

Katsuhito looked out the window, perhaps an obligatory act, then looked back to Keisuke. "I don't understand."

"It's that kid out there. He's the son of the Emperor and Empress of my home planet... which means he's in line for the throne... which means he may be MY Emperor one day." Akura explained, emphasizing the morbidness of his foresight.

"C'mon, the boy's not so bad. And after all, you've never been very patient with people yourself, that's why you dumped his training onto me, wasn't it?" Katsuhito commented.

Akura scoffed, "Wait till you've known him as long as I have and see what you think then." He replied

"Well, I'll admit he can be a bit... stubborn sometimes and hasn't got much confidence... but then again, he's young." Katsuhito said, in his more sympathetic nature. He took another sip of tea, "I remember how you were during your adolescence..."

_Akura continued to sip his tea as he and Yosho were taken back to their past..._

"Now remember, boy, you're meeting with the future Emperor of Jurai... you will not look him directly in the eye, unless otherwise instructed by him... you must always refer to him as 'Lord Yosho'... and you will not speak unless spoken to... have I made these instructions perfectly clear?" High General Kado, the Head Of The Juraian Royal Guard at the time spoke firmly and intently to a young boy standing before him.

The young boy was Akura, age 12 (in Tenchi space years). Though much younger, his perpetually gloomy mug was still a major characteristic. He was completely bald, as well, his head shaven (as made by decree, no male entering the Juraian Royal Palace was to have long hair, unless a member of the Royal family) and hadn't yet grown facial hair. "Yes..." He spoke in a passive aggressive tone, still looking at the floor.

High General Kado backhanded Akura across the face, causing the boy to hit the ground. "YES, WHAT!" The Guard asked furiously.

"Yes, High General..." The boy grunted, still laying on the floor.

"You'd better not be so forgetful when speaking to the future Emperor!" The High General shouted as he picked Akura off the floor and stood him up straight. "I've heard about you boy... the Emperor and Empress of Genissant recommended you personally for this Honor. But I've also heard you have some bad habits; bad habits that could get you executed if you try to pull them here."

One of the members of the Royal Household materialized himself into the room. "I trust the boy understands how to behave in front of Lord Yosho?" He asked.

"Yes, we've made things clear." High General Kado assured him.

"Good, let's proceed, then." The Royal Household member said, before materializing himself, Lord Kado, and Akura to Yosho's Throne Room in the Royal Palace.

The trio found themselves at the towering front door of Yosho's quarters. They entered in one by one, Akura being forced to lead them as they approached the throne where Yosho was to sit. The room had an audience of Yosho's personal guards who stood in attendance. They arrived at the throne and stood, awaiting the Prince's arrival.

Yosho, followed by an entourage of his personal subjects, entered the room. The entire room bowed as he made his way to sit on the throne. High General Kado, pulled Akura to the floor in order to make sure he didn't "forget". Akura attempted to look up at Yosho, before being granted permission, his head was hastily forced back down by High General Kado.

Yosho, at the this time, was the mirror image of Tenchi, only with long, well maintained hair.

One of Yosho's subjects made his way center-stage to address the room, "We will begin this official audience with Lord Yosho, the Prince Of Jurai. You will all remain bowed unless you are being personally addressed by His Majesty." The subject announced, then promptly returned to his position alongside the others.

"I wish to address: Akura Setogawa of Genissant." Yosho spoke.

High General Kado nudged Akura to rise, practically lifting him off the ground.

"So, boy, I understand you wish to be admitted as a student of swordsmanship under my personal apprenticeship?" Yosho asked Akura.

Akura remained hesitantly silent, unsure of what to say.

After a few moments of this, one of Yosho's subjects marched over to Akura and struck him across the face, though not quite as powerful as High General Kado's lick, it still left a red mark across the boy's face, "You will answer His Majesty's inquiries!" The subject shouted.

Akura composed himself, quickly, "Yes, Lord Yosho." He shivered.

The subject walked back to his position.

"The Emperor and Empress of Genissant are very good friends of mine and they gave me their personal recommendation to accept you into my program. You should feel honored, you're the first non-Juraian to have ever had this opportunity put before you. The chance to train under a member of the Juraian Royal family is usually only reserved for other family members and high title prospects for the Royal Guard." Yosho explained. "The only question is... will you accept my personal invitation?" Yosho asked.

Akura stared at his feet for a few moments, "I accept, Lord Yosho..." Akura answered, in an emotionally blank tone.

_The memories flashed forward to Akura's first day of training. _

"So I hear the new kid's not a Juraian." Another child who was training under Yosho was chit-chatting with the other students in the program.

They were all stood around in a Yosho's personal dojo. Being that it was a Royal establishment, it was much bigger and more extravagant than your average dojo was.

Yosho entered the dojo with Akura walking beside him. Akura was noticeably nervous about his first day. He kept his eyes pointed at the ground. The rest of the students assembled and bowed before Yosho. "Rise." Yosho told the students. As the students stood up, Yosho put his hand on Akura's shoulder, "This is your new classmate, Akura Setogawa. He comes here from Genissant. I want you to treat him like you would treat any other one of the students here; as an equal... from now on, he's your brother."

"But Master, he can't be our brother, he's not even a Juraian!" One of the students quipped.

Yosho laughed, he seemed to have a more personal relationship with his students than with his subject, "And just how boring would things be if all of us were exactly the same?" Yosho replied.

_The next stop on Memory Lane brought them to a later time in Akura's training with Yosho._

Akura stood in the middle of a circle of the other students he trained alongside, "I don't know why the Master would even consider letting a foreigner try and learn the art of Juraian swordsmanship." One of the boys asked.

"Me either. We Juraians are the most powerful beings in the universe, what makes you think you'll even survive training?" Another boy taunted.

"Why are you even wasting our Master's time? You'll never make it to any position of power, being from Genissant." One of the girl students added to the teasing.

Akura clenched his fists, trying to hold back his anger, "I don't want anything to do with Jurai, my allegiance is to the Emperor and Empress of Genissant!' He exclaimed.

"Genissant is nothing anymore, your whole planet's one big joke now, and your Emperor is just our Emperor's puppet." Yet another student chimed in.

At this point, Akura couldn't take it anymore, he jumped at the nearest student and began mercilessly beating on him. It wasn't long before the other students pulled Akura off and began to gang up on him.

The quarrel was found out by Yosho, who took Akura into his chambers and had a talk with him. The adolescent Akura was crying because of the event, "They insulted my Emperor, they said Genissant wasn't even a real nation. It's not true, is it!"

Yosho embraced Akura and let the boy cry in his arms, "Some people are born with certain ideals about their superiority. It's a very terrible practice perpetuated among Juraians, and even though I don't agree with it, it's something that even I can do nothing about at this time." Yosho comforted Akura, then stood him back up and began to address him more sternly. "Now the question is, what to do about it? Are you going to accept your inferiority, or are you going to prove them wrong?"

Akura looked up at Yosho, his attitudes towards himself, somehow changed by Yosho's wisdom.

_During his training on Jurai, he would often be found practicing his swordsmanship by himself, using it as an opportunity to exercise his own demons. _During this particular event, he was caught by a few of his fellow students.

"Get lost Setogawa, we need to use the dojo now. We need your foreign stench screwing us up." The supposed leader of the group demanded.

Akura stared the group down, unwilling to leave.

"Well, are your legs broken? Do you need us to help you find the door?" The leader said, getting in Akura face.

Akura shoved the leader away, "You Juraians really need to watch your mouth, you weren't always so powerful, we used to own you. And if you're really stupid enough to think you or your Emperor are gonna last forever-"

"What did I just hear from you, boy!" One of the keepers of the dojo caught Akura by surprise and promptly drug him before superiors...

_After word got out about what Akura had_ _said, it was decided that immediate disciplinary action should be taken. _Yosho unwillingly attended Akura's flogging. "You really don't have to do this." Yosho said to one of the Emperor's Advisors, who was to be the overseer of the punishment.

"I'm sorry, Lord Yosho, but your father gave me specific orders to see this through. He's quite lucky the Council decided against charging him with treason..." The Advisor replied.

His Master and his classmates stood and watched as Akura was publicly flogged for his words. Yosho was noticeably affected by this exhibition, he could barely watch.

_Further into the memories, they found themselves at Akura's return to Genissant after finishing his training. _He was now in his twenties, he began growing out his signature goatee and long hair. His return to Genissant was met with immediate celebrity. To the public eye, he was seen as a sort of national hero, reigning in a new era for Genissantian and Juraian civil relations. But in private, things were a bit different.

He began his Genissant Military career in the highest regards. A position as Captain was tossed at him with little to no hesitance. Once again, he found himself an outcast among the other soldiers of his age group, who were just starting out.

A group of soldiers were chit-chatting among themselves on the first day of Akura's arrival at his stationed military base. "So this new Captain really trained with the Emperor of Jurai?" One of the soldiers asked.

"Yeah, and they practically gift-wrapped him a Captain's title." One of the other soldiers replied.

"This is just great! Reminds me of the time my parents brought home my baby brother. I'm an adult now, I shouldn't have to take this kind of crap." Another soldier added.

Their talk was interrupted as the Akura, their new 'Captain' came walking by, escorted by another officer. The soldiers all stood at attention as they walked. Akura glanced over at the group of soldiers, who appeared to have their allegiances in order, but he could tell what that really thought of him...

_Back to the matter at hand, Akura sat sipping his tea, reminiscing of times past... _

"Nothing was ever easy for me, I was ridiculed by the Juraians and then when I returned, my own people wouldn't accept me. Then when you disappeared, I had no friends left. But I never gave up and I earned my title as Head of the Royal Guard. This... kid... he's had everything handed to him since he was born, but he just... doesn't care about anything. As hard as I try, I can't see the Emperor and Empress in him." Akura spoke, with unadulterated melancholy.

Katsuhito took another sip of his tea, "Perhaps your hesitance to accept him as your Lord, stems from his ability to be true to himself."

Akura raised his eyebrow and looked at Katsuhito, "Would you like to elaborate?"

Katsuhito laughed, "Well, old friend, I never wanted to have to say this, but you have this... thing about you. Something always seems to be bothering you... in the many years we've known each other, I've heard you complain about everything from the tea being lukewarm to openly criticizing the Emperor and Empress's decisions. Yet, when all's said and done, you finish the tea and you babysit their son for twenty years."

"So you're saying this kid's somehow got it all figured out and I'm a sucker. You sure know how to cheer a guy up." Akura replied, sarcastically.

"I'm saying that life is a constant struggle to understand one another... in all my years, I'd like to think the one thing I've learned is that you never stop learning and everyone has something to teach you. You may not know this, but when I was instructing you and all my other students, you taught me just as much and helped shaped me into what I am today. Who do you think was a main influence in my decision to leave Jurai?" Katsuhito continued to converse.

"Well, I've always secretly wanted to get into the competitive eating circuit, maybe he can teach me a thing or two there." Akura quipped, then threw back some more tea.

Katsuhito snickered, "Well, just remember, he is the Prince of Genissant... And maybe it's just me, but I have faith that the Emperor and Empress have sent us the right man for the job." Katsuhito sat his tea cup down. His eyes quickly shifted to the window. "I saw that." He said, before grabbing a rock from his basket and chucked it at Keisuke's head.

**Whack**

"Ow!" Keisuke yelped. "You bastard! That's not fair, the wind blew my arm to the side!" He yelled at Katsuhito from the outside of the shine.

"A warrior must learn to overcome any obstacle, this includes the elements." Katsuhito said before picking up another stone from the basket and chucking it at Keisuke again. "That's two for flinching!" He added, then began to laugh. "I sure love training new pupils."

A little while after, Katsuhito and Akura emerged from the shrine. Keisuke was dead on his feet, but still holding his arm in the ninety degree angle.

"Alright, Keisuke, you may rest now." Katsuhito said.

Keisuke put his arm down, overjoyed.

"Now, we'll expect you here every day at around this time. We need to get you in shape fast, lad." Katsuhito informed Keisuke.

"So is this training thing gonna take over my school work, or what?" Keisuke asked, hoping for a free excuse.

Akura laughed, "If only if it were that simple, I think the Emperor and Empress wouldn't approve of all this class-cutting you've been doing. Starting today, it's gonna be work, work, work, and that includes your studies. Think of me as your own personal dean."

"Wait, so now I have to go to class and do this stupid training thing every day? When do I get a break?" Keisuke cried.

Katsuhito began to scratch his chin, "Now that you mention it..." He began.

"What?' Keisuke asked.

"You see, you boys chose to start this whole training thing during an awkward time. I forgot to mention it, but me and some old friends of mine are going to be taking a trip to Kyoto tomorrow and we won't be back until Sunday. I guess that means you're gonna have the next seven days off from your training, Keisuke." Katsuhito explained.

Keisuke's face lit up with joy, "Oh, really?" He asked in excitement.

"Which, in turn, means that when I get back, your training will have to be eight times as difficult." Katsuhito added.

Keisuke frowned.

Akura turned to Ryo-Oki who was sitting on his shoulder, "Well, Ryo-Oki, you'd better get Keisuke home, he needs to get to bed early, cause he's got a class in the morning."

Ryo-Oki replied with an enthusiastic "Meow!" before hopping off Akura's shoulder, transforming into her spaceship form and taking Keisuke home.

As the two flew off back to Sigma House, Katsuhito and Akura could hear Keisuke screaming from the top of his lungs, "You jerks aren't gonna get away with this!"

Akura said his farewells to his master before returning to his own ship orbiting Earth. Katsuhito went back inside to finish his daily shrine duties.

Back at Sigma house, everyone was sitting around the table preparing for dinner. Sasami and Maiya came out of the kitchen carrying the food. "Here it is, everybody, enjoy!" Sasami said enthusiastically. Everyone helped themselves to a plate and began to eat.

"Wow, so Keisuke and Ryo-Oki still aren't back yet?" Ryoko observed.

"Nope, they've been gone for a good four hours now." Tenchi responded.

"I sure hope they get back soon." Sasami said in a worried voice.

"Yeah, or else we're gonna have a lot of leftovers." Daisuke joked. Everyone at the table laughed.

The laughter was suddenly halted when everyone heard the door slam open. They all peaked around the dining room doorway to see Keisuke struggling to take his shoes of and grumbling to himself "Stupid Akura, stupid training, stupid school..."

Ryo-Oki ran passed him and jumped onto Sasami's shoulder letting out an enthusiastic "Meow!"

"Welcome back, Ryo-Oki!" Sasami laughed.

Keisuke stomped his way from the front door into the dining room, everyone seemed too nervous to speak to him. He took a seat next to Maiya and Junichi, he looked over to Junichi who was on his left side, "Junichi, can I get a cigarette off you?" He asked.

"Don't you have your own cigarettes?" Junichi replied.

Keisuke shot up from his chair and grabbed Junichi by his shirt collar, "No! Tenchi's crazy grandpa took them from me! Now are you gonna let me have a cigarette or am I gonna have to kick you in the nuts and take one?" He exclaimed with extreme ferocity.

"Alright, man, take it easy." Junichi said in a worried voice, he then reached into his coat pocket and gave Keisuke a cigarette. Keisuke wasted no time lighting it up and taking a few drags.

"So, you met my grandpa today, huh?" Tenchi asked.

"Yeah. Old bastard made he hold a sword in the air for three goddamn hours!" Keisuke replied.

"Oh, that exercise, huh? Yeah, it's a tuffy the first few times-"

Keisuke suddenly banged his fists onto the table, shocking everyone, "Wh-whatever, I don't want to talk about it." He stuttered, wiping the sweat off his brow. His hands and arms shook furiously as he attempted to scoop some curry onto his plate from the table. After a few seconds of this, he gave up and slammed his plate onto the table in what appeared to be a nervous breakdown, "You know... fuck it, I'm not hungry..." He said, in a tone on the edge of insanity, then excused himself from the table.

The congregation around the table watched and listened as Keisuke made a hasty exit from the dining room, ran up the stairs, and into his bedroom, slamming the door behind him.

"Well, could someone pass the udon noodles and the soy sauce?" Washu asked, prompting the everyone to continue with their feast, ending yet another eventful day at Sigma House.

_Meanwhile, Akura was held up on his spaceship, seated asleep in the ship's cockpit. _His expression while asleep was very similar to the one he held while dealing with Keisuke; squinty with hint of perpetual irritation. His body began to convulse and his face became twitchy as he dreamt of his past.

His dream saw him with a squad of Gennisantian soldiers, standing before a burning town. A plethora of bloodied corpses laid before Akura and his platoon. The corpses were those of other soldiers who appeared to have been slain by some unknown entity.

The other soldiers stared fixated at the chaos in apparent horror. Akura, being the commanding officer, tried to remain calm and collective, though he too was secretly perturbed by the grizzly sight.

"There's no way the rebels could have done this!" One of the soldiers inquired, in startled amazement.

"What should we do, Sir?" Another soldier asked Akura.

Akura stood hesitant for a moment, "Secure the area, we have to find out what happened here." He answered, still trying to hold on to his haughty persona.

The soldiers began to spread out in all directions, determined to find the cause of their slain comrades.

Little did they know, a figure stood hiding in the shadows, watching the platoon as they scurried to find answer.

Akura and a few other soldiers remained at the original site, studying the corpses. Akura stood over a particular group of bodies. He examined the area thoroughly, he came to the conclusion that no trace of the perpetrator had been left, "This was either done by a small squad or well trained rogue... whoever it was, they did it very quickly..." He inquired.

The figure who remained in the shadows, heard this and smiled.

The soldiers reported back to Akura, "What do we do now, sir?" One of the soldiers asked.

In an instant, the figure emerged quickly from the shadows and cut two soldiers down and disappeared again. The remaining soldiers formed a quick phalanx to protect themselves. By now, they were all scared out of their wits, except for Akura who walked out into the open, "Show yourself, rogue!" He demanded. A tense silence took over the crowed for a moment before an ominous laughter rang out.

Akura looked to the shadows where he saw eyes and a mouth staring and giggling. Akura remained silent. The figure slowly emerged from the shadows. As more light shined upon the figure, Akura's expression suddenly changed from a confident fixture to full on horror. He looked deeply into the figures eyes in disbelief, unable to grasp a sentence, "...You." He said in a petrified quietness.

_He jolted awake in a cold sweat. _He took a few deep breaths, then stood and stretched, in an attempt to collect himself. After shuffling around for a few moments, he grabbed a smoke from his pack and lit up.

He walked to the cockpit window, looking out at the vastness with an uneasy gaze.


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter Four: A Red Letter Day**

In the far corners of Earth's solar system; a large, solemn space craft floated ominously, seemingly biding its time. The ship, though enormous in size, appeared almost invisible in the vast darkness of space, as its translucent black coating and windows cloaked it from unsuspecting eyes. The ship's crew gathered in the mess hall:

Gorou Rin; an older man, appearing to be in his forties. He held a gruff exterior; bald, with a thick, black goatee. His face was scarred and worn from years of combat. The most noticeable one stretched down the left side of his face, from his glass eye to his jaw. His daily routine mostly consisted of cleaning his assortment of heavy and light firearms.

Ren Tagi; a man appearing to be in his early thirties or so. Unlike Gorou, this man was more effeminate, to put it loosely. He had blonde, thinning hair and wore a generous amount of make-up. At the moment, he was busy giving himself a manicure.

Another man, simply known to the crew as 'The Old Man' because as far as they know, he only speaks gibberish that is decipherable only as far as the ramblings of an alzheimer's victim. In appearance, he was short and slouched, partly due to his long Santa beard. He sat alone in the far corner watching his own personal, mini-holographic television while quietly mumbling nonsense to himself.

Kahvei Fujimoto; dressed similar to a high end drug dealer, wife beater and all. The same sharp yet casual look Junichi has been going for, but doesn't look like a tool. He had long, slick black hair and dark eyes. Sat hunched over a table smoking a cigarette.

Lastly, there was Haromatsu Kasahara. The youngest of the group, his late teens or so. He didn't so much fit in with the others in appearance; he in no way resembled a hardened criminal, but rather just another socially awkward teen. He had shoulder length light brown hair, that he draped over his face which seemed to assume perpetual gloom. He sat by himself in the far corner, listening to a conversation between the other crew members...

"So anyone know what's up with the Boss? I'm starting to get sick of waiting around in the middle of buttfuck nowhere." Gorou said.

"Maybe he's gone chicken on us." Kahvei quipped.

"I'd watch my mouth if I were you, honey, the Boss doesn't like that kind of talk." Ren said.

"Yeah, and he's been locked away in his quarters this whole time, what the hell is he doing in there, I wanna see some action!" Gorou exclaimed.

"Well, just don't forget who we're dealing with here; Akura and the Prince Of Jurai... not exactly a bunch nobodies." Ren added.

"Bullshit. Akura's been on the couch for twenty years, and I don't see what's supposed to be so scary about the Juraian kid... Kagato was just some lab geek." Kahvei replied.

"Then why don't you go bring up your concerns to the boss, personally." Ren suggested.

Gorou scoffed, "To hell with that..." Then went back to cleaning his weapons.

The Old Man sitting in the corner of the room suddenly turned around and looked at the rest of the crew, "I tell ya... that FDR's gonna fix this economy any day now..." He said to an unresponsive audience.

"Hey Haro, go change it to _60 Minutes _for The Old Man so he shuts up." Gorou asked.

Harohatsu shot up from his seat and left the room, apparently ignoring Gorou's request. The crew watched with eyebrows raised.

"Wonder what's up his ass..." Ren inquired.

Haromatsu made his way across the ship to the Boss's chamber doors. He stood in front for a few seconds before the automatic doors opened, letting him in. The Boss's chamber was a huge, darkened room, the only light retaining from fleeting glimpses of the stars through a couple windows. The Boss sat in the middle of the room, on a throne-like chair, wrapped in a robe which cloaked most of his appearance.

"Harohatsu... and to what do I owe this visit?" The Boss called out as Haro made his way closer to him.

Harohatsu stood in front of The Boss and stared him directly in the eye, confidence apparently illuminating off him. "Sir... I've..." He struggled to begin his first sentence. "Sir... the crew is ready."

"Ready for what?" The Boss asked, almost rhetorical sounding.

"We're ready to fight, we're ready to take the Rock of Beryllos. Sir, don't you think we should make our move as soon as possible before others find out?" Harohatsu's confidence picked up.

"We made our move, remember, Akura and the Prince Of Jurai tore those mecha apart... they were so expensive too." The Boss spoke down to Harohatsu.

"Don't you think we're more capable than those machines?" Harohatsu asked.

"So have you started your mutiny, yet?" The Boss lifted his head.

Harohatsu's eyes shifted, a faint hint of concern laced his voice, "I- what?" He replied, reverting back to his old speech pattern.

"Well, surely you feel my leadership skills are no longer adequate and now the crew are taking the ship with you as their leader." The Boss continued.

"Sir... there's no mutiny." Harohatsu pleaded.

The Boss sat forward in his seat, his elbows rested on his knees, holding his head up. "So then... you just came here to tell me I'm an idiot, then?"

Harohatsu hesitated to answer, "No, sir... I- just wanted to talk about-"

"Talk? That's it?" The Boss shouted before shooting up from his chair and walking towards Haromatsu, who at this time had begun perspire, yet remained frozen still.

As the boss heaved himself from the chair, his robe fell off, revealing himself to be an extremely large and hulking man. His specific physical features could only be glimpsed through the darkness. He was about nine feet tall, had huge bulging muscles, and was completely bald. His face was disfigured, as if it were the results of a massive bludgeoning.

"I don't ask for much... do you understand?" The Boss explained as he stomped forward towards Harohatsu. "But I do have one rule... one measly rule... and that is not to talk to me, unless it's entirely necessary."

The Boss stood towering over Harohatsu, who was still frozen stiff, not looking the Boss directly in the eye.

"And do you know why I have this rule?" The Boss asked, as he paced circles around Harohatsu.

Harohatsu remained struggled to compose himself, he gulped, "Because you hate talking to people."

"Because I hate talking to people... that's correct..." The Boss put his hand on top of Harohatsu's head and sort of jolted it from side to side. His grip was tight at first, but he soon loosened it as he tried to compose himself. "But I'm not mad..." The Boss snickered, then began to pace circles around Harohatsu again. "You've been flirting with my girl haven't you?"

Harohatsu was more confused than everything else, "What do you mean, sir?" He asked.

"Oh, don't play coy with me. She's a fine lady... I don't blame you for wanting her... But she can be bad for you... She tries to play tricks on your mind... She needs someone like me, someone who understands her, who can share in her pain..." The Boss stopped pacing for a moment, "Don't you understand, Harohatsu, you just see her as... a Rock... and that's all she is to you. She'll never love you, you need to let her go, she's bad for you..."

Harohatsu remained frozen perfectly still. Not wanting to say one more word.

"I just don't want to see you hurt..." The Boss sighed.

"Sir, the Rock, it doesn't control me, I just think we have our best chance-" Harohatsu was silenced when the Boss grabbed him by his hair and gently tugged at it.

"Harohatsu, when I first brought you aboard this crew, you were but a young boy... something that appealed to me as a sort of novelty. But the problem with novelty items is that their value wears out over time..." The Boss let go of his hair and began to pace around him again, repeatedly reaching out to grab and jerk Harohatsu around by his neck, and give him nice little love taps to the head, sort of like what a big brother would do to his younger sibling. "You're becoming a man now, Harohatsu, and frankly I've noticed signs of you deteriorating into a very boring person..." He continued. "You're a great space pirate and all, a very proficient killer... but what else do you have that should interest me?" The once again stopped pacing and wrapped his two enormous hands around Harohatsu's neck.

Harohatsu began to quiver in fear.

"So, what's actually keeping you here?" The Boss asked as his grip tightened around Harohatsu's neck.

As Harohatsu felt his Boss's tightening grip around his throat and less air entering his lungs. Tears began to shoot out of his eyes, his face petrified with fear.

The Boss watched with his hands still throttling the boy's neck as Harohatsu's tears became more prominent. After a few moments of this, he smiled, then loosened his grip. Harohatsu dropped to the floor, on his knees. He coughed a few times, then stumbled back to his feet.

"Aww, how could I even think to hurt a face like that." The Boss spoke in a very loving manner. He then grabbed Harohatsu by his chin and made him look up, "Look at all those tears... just like the little boy I remember." The Boss sneered, then walked back to his chair. "And remember, don't come and bother me unless you have something good to say. You may go." The Boss said as he sat down.

Harohatsu began making his way to the door.

"See you later, Harohatsu, or should I say, Little Haro?" The Boss bid farewell as Harohatsu left the room.

As soon as he was out the door, Harohatsu marched his way back through the ship, furious, still trying to hold back tears.

Unfortunately, he still had to walk through the mess hall. The crew all looked as he came marching through the mess hall, trying to get out as quickly as possible.

"Uh oh, looks like someone got yelled at by the Boss." Gorou teased.

The crew began to laugh at Harohatsu as he continued to pass through without making eye contact.

"Hey Haro, he make you his bitch?" Kahvei asked as he lit a cigarette.

"If you needed some K-Y, you could've just asked." Ren added.

Harohatsu finally made his way through the exit without looking back. The crew continued their laughter riot.

The Old Man was the last to quit, "I tell you, that Rita Hayworth sure is top heavy." He said.

Harohatsu's destination was the ship's pod room. He climbed into one of the pods and without hesitation, and took off into space.

The Boss watched out his window as Harohatsu made his way towards Earth. "No harm in killing two birds with one stone, let's just hope my little present makes it there safely." The Boss said to himself.

Harohatsu's pod drew closer and closer to Earth, "No Rock controls me... when I bring back the head of the Prince of Genissant, that'll show those assholes." The pod entered in Earth's orbit and Harohatsu set the landing coordinates for just outside of Hanayama University. "Now, Prince of Genissant, let's see what you're made of..."

_It was mid-morning, Earth time in Japan. _Keisuke was busy in the backyard with his electric hedge trimmer in one hand and a cigarette in the other, cutting the fat off of the bushes. Though, he seemed to be making things worse for wear. Keeping him company was a fifth of whiskey, which was about halfway down the line and his MP3 player. He sang along with the lyrics:

"_Here's a little somethin' bout a nigga like me_

_Never shoulda been let out the penititary_

_Keisuke would like ta say_

_That I'm a crazy mutha fucka from around the way!_

_Since I was a youth, I smoked weed out_

_Now I'm the mutha fucka that ya read about_

_Takin' a life or two_

_That's what the hell I do, you don't like how I'm livin_

_Well fuck you!"_

Harohatsu was waiting in the trees, studying his victim in his natural habitat.

He smiled and snickered at the prospect of victory.

Keisuke shut off his trimmer in order to take a whiskey break, though he still had his MP3 player going.

Harohatsu jumped from the trees and landed in the backyard, Keisuke apparently hadn't noticed.

"_Cause I'm tha type o' nigga that's built ta last_

_If ya fuck wit me I'll put a foot in ya ass_

_See I don't give a fuck 'cause I keep bailin_

_Yo, what the fuck are they yellin"_

Keisuke continued singing.

Harohatsu stood and drew his sword, pointing it at Keisuke, who still appeared to be none the wiser.

"Prince Of Genissant!" Harohatsu exclaimed, apparently not seeing Keisuke's earphones. "My name is Harohatsu Kasahara of the Shisou Space Pirates, and I have come to challenge you to a duel to the death, warranted by the Rock of Beryllos.

Keisuke took one last gulp from his bottle then grabbed his hedge trimmer and continued to trim the bushes, still oblivious to Harohatsu's presence.

"Hey!" Harohatsu shouted.

Keisuke glaced over his shoulder, seeing Harohatsu standing there. He shut off the trimmer, then removed his earphones. He stared at Harohatsu for a few moments with a look of confusion upon his brow.

Harohatsu stood waiting for a reply, "Well?" He asked, annoyed.

Keisuke continued with his blank stare for a few moments. His eyes moved up and down Harohatsu, examining his sword and funny looking clothes. "Um... the D'n'D club meets at Gamma house, dude." He said.

Harohatsu's eyes twitched, "What? I said I'm here to kill you!" He screamed.

"Hey, wait a minute... This doesn't have anything to do with the gas bill does it? Cause I called those guys and they said it'd be okay if I paid next week-"

"You idiot, I'm here for the Rock of Beryllos!" Harohatsu screamed again.

Keisuke hiccupped, "Oh..." His drunken mind has just caught up. "Oh, my. I'm not really sure what to say..." He replied.

Harohatsu pointed his sword back at Keisuke, "Your prayers oughta be a nice start." He suggested.

Keisuke's eyes widened, "Hey, that's a good one, now let me think of one to fire back at you..." Keisuke said, then began scratching his chin, in thought of a response.

Haromatsu dropped his sword again, growing more and more irritated by the second, "What the hell do you think you're doing?" He flamed.

Keisuke looked at Harohatsu, "Huh? Well, I was-"

"Do you think this is a joke or something?" Harohatsu interrupted him.

"Well, no, I was just trying to think of a comeback so I didn't look-"

"I don't have to take any insults from some fat idiot like you! I'm Harohatsu Kasahara, one of the fiercest killers in the entire universe and I'm here to take your head! So start taking this seriously, god damn it!" Harohatsu screamed, practically at the top of his lungs.

"Okay, geez! You don't need to be a jerk!" Keisuke exclaimed.

"I've had enough of this talk, draw your weapon!" Harohatsu proclaimed, as he for the third time pointed his sword in Keisuke's direction.

Keisuke looked down at his hedge trimmer, ran it a couple of times, then shrugged his shoulders.

Harohatsu moved into battle stance, then lunged towards Keisuke.

Keisuke, hedge trimmer still in hand, stumbled back, holding onto the trigger.

They charged at each other for what seemed like ten seconds, before the chord on Keisuke's 'weapon' began stretching too far and was yanked out of the electric outlet it was plugged in to. Keisuke noticed the trimmer had stopped, so in a fit of confusion, he stopped in his tracks to look back, revealing the disconnected plug. "Aw, shit..." He groaned.

Though Keisuke's attention had been drawn away, Harohatsu kept the charge going and dealt Keisuke an upward strike with his blade.

**slice**

Keisuke looked back, he and Harohatsu watched in sequence, in what seemed like slow motion at the time, as Keisuke's right arm was severed clean off. The two watched as the bloody limb flew through the air, hedge trimmer still attached, until it finally hit the ground.

The two stood in silence for a few moments, Keisuke, in his drunken stupor, still not quite processing what had just happened. It wasn't until he looked at the bloody nub where his arm use to be that he finally popped back into reality. "Gah!" He screamed, then began to quiver from shock. "You- you fucker... You chopped my arm off... I can't-" He panted, using his other hand to feel the empty space his arm once occupied.

Harohatsu snickered, relishing in apparent victory, "Well, I was hoping for a bit more than that, but I guess it'll have to do." He said as he wiped the blood off his blade.

Keisuke was still fixated on the loss of his arm, no longer processing Harohatsu's presence. "Look at it, it's not there anymore..." He spoke in a dreaded, hushed tone as he wiggled his bloody nub. His skin began to turn pale, the severed portion of his arm still gushing with blood.

Harohatsu prepared to deliver a death blow now, "Yeah, sorry about that pal... Here let me take your mind off the pain..." He said as he prepared to slice at Keisuke's neck.

"Why I can hardly believe my eyes, is that Little Haro I see down there?" A voice rang out from above.

Harohatsu paused to look up at the roof of the mansion where he saw none other than Ryoko standing, looking down at him. His rough, confident exterior suddenly reverted to illuminating caution. He stood back to get a good look. "Ry—Ryoko? I didn't know you were here!" He said.

Keisuke was still standing by in shock, unaware of his surroundings.

"It's been a long time... the last time I remember seeing you, you were just this tiny little thing." Ryoko mockingly reminisced.

Harohatsu began to back away, inch by inch. He finally composed himself and attempted to stand his ground, but still didn't utter a word.

"So what brings you around these parts, huh?" She asked, rhetorically. "You weren't giving my landlord any trouble now, were you?" Her tone grew more threatening by the syllable.

Harohatsu's continued to stand his ground, "You don't scare me, Ryoko!" He assuringly retorted.

Ryoko frowned, "I don't? Then perhaps we can find something that does." She said before disappearing and reappearing behind Harohatsu with a ball of energy. "Does this scare you?" She asked as she inched closer to Harohatsu, who, in turn, moved back, in step.

"My, my, my... look at you, all grown up, huh, Little Haro?" She commented, with a mix of threat and mockery. "What a cutie you turned out to be. Too bad I had to see this before I met Tenchi, otherwise I might be able to teach you a thing or two." She lovingly quipped.

Harohatsu once again attempted to stand his ground, "I'm not Little Haro anymore, Ryoko. I'm a space pirate and I'm here with the rest of them and we're gonna take the Rock of Beryllos!" He assured her.

Ryoko laughed, "That sounds like a threat." She said before cornering him against the mansion's outer wall and materializing a sword from her ball of energy. "Maybe you ought to think twice before coming around and bullying my friends... I really hate to have to mess up that cute little mug of yours." Ryoko continued to threaten as she inched closer and Harohatsu's panic grew.

Ryoko extended her arm, in preparation to strike Harohatsu down with her blade...

"Hold on, Ryoko!" Keisuke shouted from the background.

Ryoko slowly turned her head, squinching her eyes, "What is it?" She asked, annoyed.

Harohatsu stood frozen with his back pressed against the wall. Pausing to reflect on his death being postponed.

Keisuke stood before them in gleaming confidence. His signature sloping posture and blank face had been overcome as he stood firm and straight, his eyes showed a conviction not often seen in his expression. Even Ryoko and Harohatsu were forced to pause their previous engagement in order to glimpse upon this moment.

"Don't kill him!" Keisuke ordered in a stern tone.

Ryoko raised her eyebrow, "Come again?" She asked.

"I'm going to do it!" Keisuke proclaimed.

Ryoko blinked a few times, "Oh... okay, I guess I can hold him while you cut his throat or something-"

"No! I want to fight him myself!" Keisuke interrupted.

"Are you out of your mind? You're missing an arm!" Ryoko shouted, "And he's, like, right here. I can kill him right now!"

"That son of a bitch took my arm... I'd say I'm entitled to some payback!" Keisuke gripped his right arm, causing the nub to squirt a few spouts of blood.

"Yeah, I took his arm, he's entitled to some payback!" Harohatsu concurred.

Ryoko looked back at Harohatsu, "You be quiet!" She yelled, to which Harohatsu was obliged to listen. "Damn it, how do you expect to fight him with one arm? You're not thinking straight!" She continued.

"One week, give me one week to prepare myself for battle. Then I just want it to be me and him, a fight to the death!" Keisuke spoke with great conviction.

Ryoko, trying to reason with Keisuke began to gesture her arms in a fit of annoyance, "But, seriously, he's right here, I can just kill him now!" She exclaimed.

Noticing Ryoko had dropped her guard, Harohatsu made a fast one, jumping into the air and landing on top of one of the trees in the back yard. "That sounds like a fair request to me. And, after all, we're obliged to listen to the Prince of Genissant."

Ryoko buried her face in her hands, "Oh geez." She said as she used her fingers to massage her forehead, "I give up..." She grumbled.

Keisuke looked up to Harohatsu, "So you're not gonna chicken out, are you?"

He asked.

Harohatsu's eye twitched, "I never chicken out." He assured Keisuke.

"Good, be here in one week, I'll make sure if you win, nobody will touch you. Just be here in one week." Keisuke finished.

Harohatsu stared Keisuke in the eye, then laughed, "What do you mean 'if' I win?" He got the last word in before making his hasty getaway.

Ryoko still had her face buried in her hands, "Oh, God... what have I just done." She moaned to herself before looking back at Keisuke, who still appeared to be focused and steady. She then suddenly noticed his severed arm again, "Um... Keisuke, don't you think we ought to take care of that?" She asked.

"Hmm?" Keisuke said as if he had been caught off guard. Before soon enough remembering the problem himself. He looked back down at his arm, "Oh, right... I almost forgot about that." He commented, before promptly falling down unconscious.

_Ryoko immediately brought Keisuke to Washu's laboratory, to receive medical treatment. _Keisuke laid down on an operating table unconscious, with his arm wrapped in some sort of cloth as Ryoko stood close by.

Washu sat by the surgical table, prepping her medical devices; a small, ray-beam like instrument and a syringe. She had dressed herself in her surgeon's uniform just for the occasion. "So, our boy's gone and gotten himself his first severed limb, they grow up so fast, don't they?" She joked as she prepped her gadgets. "So, this guy, you knew who he was?" She asked Ryoko.

"Yeah, from a long time ago, but he was just a kid then, now he's a really big kid." Ryoko replied. "But he's not who I'm worried about. He said the others were with him, and if that's true then this whole thing's gonna turn out to be more trouble than we thought."

"So... sounds like you're gonna have some explaining to do for the others." Washu said.

Ryoko sighed, "Yeah..."

Washu finished prepping. "All set!" She exclaimed, then held her hand out, "Okay, let's see the appendage."

Ryoko handed Washu the arm, still wrapped in cloth. Washu unraveled the arm and attached it to the bloody nub. She then grabbed her 'ray-gun' device, which dispensed a ray of light that illuminated around the wounded area and systematically reattached the bone, veins, and tissue. "Now... time to wake the patient." She announced, as she grabbed the syringe, poked it into his neck, then pressed down on the plunger.

Keisuke's eyes shot wide open and sat up, immediately after the syringe was removed. He began frantically gasping in a panic, "No, please, not the right one, that's the good one!" He screamed hysterically, as if he had just awoken from a dream. 

Washu smacked Keisuke across the face, "Calm down, everything's fine!" She exclaimed before smacking him again.

Keisuke's rate of breath began to decrease as he looked down to see his arm still attached, "Oh... it was just a dream, thank you merciful genius..." He panted.

"It's no dream kiddo, you almost got yourself killed there for a second." Washu told Keisuke.

"What... you mean?" Keisuke looked shocked, still using the energy to practically grope his beloved right arm.

"Yup, I'm afraid so..." Washu concurred.

Keisuke hugged Washu, practically squeezing the life out of her, "Oh, thank you, Washu! You're the best!" He cried before throwing her aside and making a run for the door. "I need to go test something, don't come in my room!" He shouted as he made his hasty exit.

Ryoko and Washu watched as this happened, Washu trying to regain her breath from Keisuke's bear hug. "Think he's worried about the fight?" Washu asked, rhetorically.

_Later that night, Ryoko and Washu assembled a meeting with everyone in the household. _They all sat and stood around the living room area, discussing the day's prior events.

"The Shisou Space Pirates!" They all gasped simultaneously.

Daisuke cocked his head, "Wait, who in the hell are The Shisou Space Pirates?" He asked.

"Don't you Earthlings know anything?" Keisuke asked, in a condescending voice.

"Check it out, Alf thinks he's smarter than us now!" Junichi replied.

Keisuke shot up from his seat and shot Junichi a look, "You wanna say that again, bitch?" He spoke in a threatening tone.

Junichi remained seated and crossed his legs, "I called you Alf, can't you hear nothin' right?" He replied.

Keisuke scoffed, "What, is that supposed to be an insult or something?" He asked sarcastically.

"Makes sense to me, you're a fat, hairy alien who has fists shoved up his ass." Maiya chimed in.

"Oh man, we're totally calling you Alf from now on." Daisuke laughed.

"The only thing is, he kills dogs instead of cats." Denise quipped.

Keisuke shot a look back over to Denise, "Oh geez, when are you gonna stop going on about your stupid dog? I'm just as guilty as anyone else here for killing that thing."

"Okay, okay!" Akura raised his voice over the crowd. "Everybody settle down." He tried to calm the fray, "...especially you Alf." He pointed to Keisuke.

Everyone laughed. Keisuke rolled his eyes, then plopped back down in his chair, crossing his arms.

Akura took a drag from his cigarette, "What have you got for us, Agent Makabi?" He asked.

Everyone looked to Kiyone, who, in turn stood up and took a deep breath.

"The Shisou Space Pirates are among the most notorious criminals in the history of the Galaxy Police. Since their inception, they've consistently been ranked among the Top Five Most Wanted in the Universe... but recently, since Kagato's case was closed and Ryoko's statute of limitations had been reached, their names were bumped up to number one...

They originally caught the eye of the Galaxy Police over twenty years ago, when a small band of them infiltrated an independent weapon's manufacturer and stole an experimental battleship. The ship they took turned out to have sophisticated cloaking technology, which they used to perpetrate their next criminal act...

Using the ship's technology, they staged a bold and much larger operation deep into the heart of Juraian territory. They snuck past Jurai's defenses without detection... Their target was a planet which mined and harvested resources the Juraian home planet and many of her colonies used. Those who were there, estimate their numbers at the time to have been several-thousand. In mere hours, the Shisou Space Pirates managed to leave the once thriving planet and its inhabitants utterly decimated. Both Jurai's military and the Galaxy Police Force attempted to respond, but by the time they got their it was too late. The Shisou Pirates stole what they could and fled Juraian territory, leaving a path of destruction behind them.

The assault costed Jurai billions of lives and astronomical amounts in resources. It had been the most devastating attack on Jurai and her people since Ryoko's attack on the home planet. Overnight their names were among the top Galaxy Police's Most Wanted Criminals. We were given support from Jurai who now considered them enemies of the state, but the Shisou Space Pirates numbers only grew and their raids only became more brutal, using the same sneak tactic they became infamous for.

They were labeled as a Terrorist Enterprise since their raids were primarily on Jurai and Galaxy Police Institutions. As a result, these labels gained them favor with many anti-establishment groups, especially those opposed to Juraian Imperialism.

Fortunately, their early successes didn't stick. With time, their numbers steadily decreased and their behavior began to resemble mere space piracy, though their affinity for targeting government run operations never ceased.

Though their activity has slowed, in recent years, they're still considered a major threat. And because of their erratic membership, only a handful have been charged for the many crimes committed. Even to this day, little is known about the origins or the inner workings of the Shisou Space Pirates... and even less is known about their mysterious figurehead, only known to records as 'The Boss'. His face is covered in scars and bruises, which makes it impossible to get a physical identification from photos, and the majority of prisoners we've taken in affiliation with the group have never seen him in the flesh.

Only one thing's for certain; he's a complete nut ball, to both his enemies and his crew. There's accounts of him slaughtering both those closest to him or even ones unlucky enough to catch him on a bad day. This brutality caused many to desert, which is the primary reason their original campaigns never lasted."

Kiyone sighed heavily, finally finished.

"So the guy who came here this morning, he was one of these Shisou Space Pirates?" Akura asked Ryoko.

"Yeah, his name's Harohatsu." Ryoko replied.

"Wow, and you were really friends with these people Ryoko?" Mihoshi asked.

Ayeka looked at Kiyone, "So, now that Ryoko's an admitted collaborator with these space pirates, shouldn't that be enough to have her file reinstated?"

Ryoko growled and grabbed Ayeka by her shirt collar, "You got something to say to me, Princess?" She asked in a threatening tone.

"I'm just wondering if we should trust you, given your history with our enemies." Ayeka snarked.

Ryoko let Ayeka go, not wanting to damage her image, "Look, I was never a part of their crew. It's just every now and then I'd roll with them, you know, when I needed a hiding place and such... The Boss used to like me and he was very helpful-"

"You're saying you knew The Boss, personally?" Kiyone seemed a bit shocked.

"And what do you mean by liked?" Ayeka chimed in, trying to rile up the crowd. Ayeka then smiled, trying to piss Ryoko off some more, "Oh, when you say 'like', do you mean-"

Ryoko rushed to silence Ayeka, "No, no, it was never like that, damn it! You didn't know the guy, he liked to talk to me about Kagato's work, that's all."

"A science buff, huh? Doesn't sound like such a bad guy to me." Washu commented. "Hey, if he was so interested in science, why didn't you ever talk about my work?" She whined.

"Because I didn't know who the hell you were! Remember, mom?" Ryoko scoldingly replied.

"Oh yeah..." Washu said as she took a sip of tea, "Speaking of which, why don't you hurry up and tell us about your first name basis?" Washu asked.

"Hey, I thought I told you stay out of my mind, woman!" Ryoko growled, grabbing Washu by her shirt collar.

"What first name basis?" Kiyone barked.

Ryoko, still holding onto Washu, looked at the room who stared back at her intently with disapproving scowls. Washu snickered, "Oh, it's some juicy stuff..."

"Shut up!" Ryoko shook Washu.

Kiyone got into Ryoko's face, "Ryoko! Do you mean to tell us that you've been holding onto valuable information about known criminals this whole time?"

Ryoko stared back at Kiyone sporting a 'deer caught in the headlights' look, yet still grasping onto Washu's collar. "Uh, well, it never came up before..." Ryoko stammered before releasing Washu and then focusing her offensive behavior on Kiyone, who recoiled at her intimidating gestures. "Besides! I don't have to talk to anyone, ya hear? I'm no snitch!" Ryoko barked only to notice everyone's disapproving scowls again. She snickered out of embarrassment, "But since it's become a more personal matter, I guess I'll let some things slip." Ryoko cleared her throat, "Okay so, it's really no big deal, but me and some of his friends use to call him Satoshi... Satoshi Yorei."

Akura's eyes widened and shot a look over to Ryoko, "Satoshi Yorei?" 

"What's the matter, Akura?" Tenchi asked, concerned.

Akura stood silent for a moment, his eyes went harder than normal, seemingly fixated to the floor, "I know that name..." He spoke ominously.

As if the needle had been knocked off a record, Daisuke stood to address the crowd, "Okay, just one second... before we go taking another trip down Memory Lane; might I remind everyone that the Buffaloes game starts in five minutes... And it's just that I got money on it and all-"

"Yeah, and I've got like... a term paper, or a midterm paper or something due tomorrow." Denise added, who had been busy applying mascara to her eyes.

Maiya went ahead and stood up from her seat, "Besides, this whole thing really doesn't concern us humans, anyway, does it?"

"Sit down!" Akura shouted, prompting Daisuke, Maiya, Junichi, Denise, and Fumiko to jump back in their seats.

"So who's this Satoshi Yorei person?" Ayeka asked Akura.

Akura lifted his gaze from the floor, "It began many years ago, back in my days on Gennisant. Satoshi Yorei was a General in the Gennisant Army during the final stages of planning for the mission on Earth. My elite outfit was called back to Gennisant in order to quell a rebellion that had been going on in one of our sectors. We were able to force a surrender within days, but little did we know what was to come next...

After the fighting had ceased, Satoshi Yorei's personal regiment was reported missing. Several patrol groups were sent out to find them, but none returned. I soon decided to take matters into my own hands..."

_Akura was brought back to his dream from the night before. _He stared into the figures eyes as it crept from the shadows, revealing a younger Satoshi aka 'The Boss'. Though his enormous size was still a key attribute, his face did not show the hideous scars and bruises of his later years. Despite his size, he held a very boyish looking face with a sort of 'mop-head' groom.

Akura inconspicuously put his hand on his blade, "General Yorei, as your superior officer, I'm hereby ordering you to stand down." Akura looked him in the eye.

Satoshi stopped in his tracks and shot Akura an unsettling grin. "And if I refuse?"

"Failure to comply will result in the use of deadly force." Akura replied, prompting his remaining troops jumped into formation around him, drawing their swords. Akura remained unbudging in his authoritative posture.

Satoshi began to laugh, "Oh, Akura... It really does make you happy, doesn't it? To put on your uniform every morning and flash your signs of authority to those you suckered into obedience. I guess I can be found guilty of the same thing, though." He looked around at the corpses of his once fellow soldiers, "These zombies you and your Juraian overlords created. They will be forgiven..." Satoshi looked back to Akura, "You, however, will find no place in the grace of her light! You and all of your kind will not live to see the new world which we will create!"

Akura finally drew his sword, but did not approach Satoshi, "You weak fool, you let it take ahold of you!" He exclaimed.

In the heat of the moment, the startled soldiers took the defensive gestures on both sides, as cues to attack. Satoshi, ever on the defensive, quickly drew his sword and slashed the first two soldiers on the frontline, killing them both, then jumping to the rooftops; avoiding Akura and the remaining soldiers who had just leapt in for the kill.

Akura looked up to Satoshi, "There's no escape Satoshi! The planet's surrounded by our troops!"

Satoshi looked down on Akura, his creepy gaze showing little worry of his own fate, "That's where you're wrong..." He assured him. Just at that moment, a smaller Gennisant ground ship appeared hovering above Satoshi. "Now who's the fool? You fell right into my trap."

The ship began to fire upon Akura and his soldiers, as they rushed to find cover. "What the hell is going on?" One of the soldiers cried.

Satoshi remained standing on the rooftops, looking down at Akura, who was peaking around the corner of a ruined building.

"These rebels may not be the most well trained, but their will to fight is astonishing. And it was all a matter of getting you here, Akura." Satoshi explained, then turned to the ship which the rebels had taken from Akura's outpost. "Just remember what I said about cherishing your authority!" Satoshi gave his parting words, then jumped onto the ship.

"_In the end, The Rock had drove him to insanity. For the next couple of years, we put all of our efforts into tracking him down, but to no avail. I knew he would return one day, which is why I opted to abandon my own military career to oversee this mission." _Akura finished, the memories fading away.

"So he's been hiding in plain sight this whole time as the leader of the Shisou Space Pirates... wow, there's some nutty people in this world." Washu commented.

"The monster he became was a result of his contact with the Rock, we didn't think a man of his stature was in danger of falling under its spell. We had both entered into the Gennisant military as officers and together excelled through the ranks. We parted ways when I was admitted into the Emperor's Royal Guard and he chose to continue his pursuit in the military. Years went by as he eventually became a General and I was named Head of the Royal Guard. I tried numerous times to land him a position with the Royal Guard, even going so far as to gaining the blessing of the Juraian Council's Overseer, but he declined all offers.

I tried one last time to recruit him for the mission on Earth. Being that he was considered the finest General in current rank and a favorite of the Emperor, I brought him into the inner circle, which turned out to be my fatal mistake..." Akura finished. "I suspected something when these Shisou Space Pirates showed up, he's the only loose end who knew about the Rock's location."

Kiyone's head fell and she began massaging in between her eyes, "Oh, my God, there's going to be a lot of paperwork." She whined.

"But there's still one thing that doesn't make sense to me." Junichi chimed in.

"One thing?" Denise asked sarcastically, still mostly focused on doing her makeup.

"So if this Rock's supposed to have these godlike, mind-controlling powers, how come none of us have been affected and we've been living here for a month?" Junichi continued.

"Yeah, like the old Dean or that other group of freshmen who killed each other?" Maiya added.

"Hurray! I was just waiting for someone to notice!" Washu became all giddy.

Everyone in the room looked to Washu, "Notice what?" Ryoko asked, suspiciously.

"That I've managed to outsmart the all-powerful Rock that would otherwise be turning your minds into tapioca pudding." Washu responded.

"Miss Washu, it's late, would it be too much to ask if we could skip the gloating for one night?" Ayeka asked.

"Okay, okay..." Washu replied, poutingly. "So as I was delving into my research on our little friend, I was able to get some readings on the behavior of its subatomic emissions. With the findings, I was able to create a shield around the house."

"You mean you found a way to contain the Rock's powers?" Akura asked, interested.

"Well... not exactly, these things take time." Washu replied, almost apologizing. "You see, the emissions that the Rock emits don't behave like normal subatomic particles like air. The individual particles possess many of the same abilities as Ryoko's jewels and the Trees of Jurai. Somehow, the Ancient Gennisantians were able to harness the Rock's abilities into creating their advanced technology, thousands of years before we as species had discovered them.

Everyone gasped.

"But not only that, the behavior of its particles are sentient and know how to use their abilities. In order to combat them, I first tried creating a shield around the planet using the Juraian energy emitted from Katsuhito's tree to power it. But the particles simply traveled through." Washu continued to explain.

"Like how Ryoko was able to break through Jurai's defenses?" Mihoshi asked.

"Precisely. So after some more research, I found that electrical impulses were effective in slowing down the particles and in large jolts can actually kill them. So using the electricity generated from house, I've essentially turned it into a giant fly trapper that's killing the flow of small particles and diverting the remainders into space; at least keeping Earths inhabitants and us in the house safe." Washu finished.

"Huh... I was wondering what those big things plugged into all the outlets were for." Junichi said.

"So that's why the energy bill is so high! Washu, you need to fix this!" Keisuke exclaimed.

"Well, I have a plan to enhance the effect so none of the particles will escape, but I would need astronomical amounts of electrical currents." Washu replied.

Ayeka stood up, "Miss Washu. I think it might interest you to know that Jurai is in possession of a large electrical field in space. It's quite far away, but if I can gain permission from my father, perhaps you can figure out a way to use it for the project."

"I've heard about that thing, brilliant, Ayeka! I'd have to travel there to set up a portal, but if there's any hope of keeping this planet safe, we should spare no expense." Washu joyed.

Akura scratched his chin, "Well, it's a start, but we need to figure out what to do in the meantime. What about this Harohatsu character? Has he given you anything, yet?" He asked.

Ryoko blinked a couple of times, in apparent confusion, "Uh... I don't see why he would." She replied.

Akura continued to pace around the room, "Well, then, let me see him, maybe I can get some information out of him." Akura asked.

"You want to talk to him?" Ryoko inquired in a slightly guilty tone.

Akura shot a look back over to Ryoko, "Yes? Is that a problem?"

Ryoko's eyes rolled, "Uh... well, not really. You just might have to wait until Sunday if you wanna talk to him."

"He escaped? How? I thought you said he wasn't a problem!" Akura exclaimed.

"Well, he himself isn't really a problem, but I never said the situation itself wasn't a problem?" Ryoko replied.

Akura sighed, "Oh, Lord, what next? Start by explaining how you would let some little pissant get away from you!"

"You know what, maybe you should ask Keisuke." Ryoko replied.

Keisuke stood up and looked at Akura, "I'm gonna kick his ass on Sunday!" He cheered, fists clenched.

Akura looked at Keisuke briefly with his eyebrow twitched, then turned back to Ryoko, "What's he talking about?"

Ryoko hesitated to answer, not wanting to be yelled at again.

"Keisuke challenged Harohatsu to a fight and Ryoko let him go." Washu answered for Ryoko.

Ryoko remained silent.

"What, that doesn't make any goddamn sense, Ryoko! Don't you realize we're at war here? You couldn't have just... you know, killed him? You're not supposed to let him go!" Akura became exasperated with shaking confusion.

"Well, Keisuke told me he wanted to fight him, and he seemed so... in the moment... sure he stunk of booze and all, but-" Ryoko stumbled.

"But why would you listen to him, why would you ever listen to Keisuke?" Akura screamed at Ryoko.

"Um... I'm sorry?" Ryoko replied, half-heartedly.

"You just can't catch a break today, can you, Ryoko?" Sasami chimed in.

"I mean, what in the world would possess you to do such a stupid thing? You let an enemy escape, one that could potentially provide us with vital information, and we don't know if he's gonna come back!" Akura continued vilifying Ryoko.

"He's gonna come back, I made sure of that!" Keisuke stood up.

Akura turned his attention to Keisuke, "And you! Don't even let me get started on you!"

"Look, Akura!" Keisuke spoke over, "Aren't you always going on about how I don't care about anything? How I'm lazy? How I'm unmotivated?... So now I finally take charge of things and you're still yelling at me. How do I win with you?"

"You forgot 'stupid'. Look, you gotta understand that you're skipping steps, here. When I say you need to get motivated, I don't mean going out and picking fights with space pirates! Do you realize your parents would have me executed if they knew this was happening?" Akura retorted.

"Why not, I'm expected to be this great warrior, how do you expect me to get experience in?" Keisuke asked.

"Okay, let me try and explain this in terms you'll understand: The guy you want to fight is a 'space pirate'... you know those mean, nasty killers you read about in history books? Well, a space pirate is the same thing, except with laser beams." Akura explained. "For God's sake, the guy already took your arm, what makes you think you have a snowball's chance in hell of winning?"

"I was drunk and unprepared this morning. Besides, what about my training, don't I need to test my skills?" Keisuke spoke with great conviction.

"You took one lesson, you retard! I could find someone from the grade school kendo club that can kick your ass!" Akura retorted.

"That's why I gave it a week. You can teach me a few things by then, can't you?" Keisuke asked.

"A week isn't nearly enough time to prepare for a fight this far out of your league." Akura said.

"Tell that to Ichigo Kurosaki, he got himself up to a captain's rank in three days!" Keisuke argued.

"Who in the hell is Ichigo Kurosaki?" Akura asked.

"The main character from Bleach." Keisuke replied.

Akura buried his face in his hand, "Damn it, Keisuke, this isn't one of your stupid Japanese cartoons, this is REAL. LIFE." Akura tried desperately to reason.

Keisuke clenched his teeth, "Well, gee, ya could've fooled me. With the all the space pirates and giant robots falling out of the sky... not to mention the fact we've been talking in exposition for the past half-hour." He continued to argue.

Akura's eyes shift, "...That's beside the point. I'm not letting you fight him."

"Excuse me, but I don't think you really have a say in the matter!" Keisuke barked, his conviction catching Akura off guard. "Like me or not, I'm still the Prince of Gennisant and you will listen to what I have to say, damn it!" He practically took his own breath away.

"Fine, Keisuke, you wanna go and get yourself killed, then I guess I really can't stop you." Akura finally buckled.

"Then will you help me?" Keisuke asked.

Akura took a deep breath, "Of course, I will. If I'm gonna let you do something stupid, I may as well prepare you. Meet me tomorrow morning at the Kobayashi Dojo in downtown Sendai. Five a.m. sharp, be there."

"I will! Thanks, Akura." Keisuke replied.

"Yeah, yeah, whatever. I'm going back to my ship." Akura said as he left the house with his head held low.

Kiyone and Mihoshi stood up, "We'd better get headed out too, GP Headquarters is gonna wanna know about the developments on the Shisou Space Pirate case." She said. "Man, and I still have that test to study for..." She grumbled as her and Mihoshi left the house.

The rest of the congregation followed in suit and began heading their separate ways. Bidding goodnights to one and all.

_Keisuke arrived at the dojo he was told at about a quarter till five. _He met Akura at the door, who let him in and showed him around.

Keisuke was amazed by how classy a place it was. It was a very spacious dojo that looked to cater to all levels of kendo and other martial arts training; stocked with a plethora of top of the line equipment. "Wow, how'd you get the keys to this place?" Keisuke asked.

"An old friend of mine teaches kendo here. Luckily for us, he needed to take a few days off cause his wife's been sick, so I volunteered to substitute for him." Akura replied.

"Neat. When do we get started?" Keisuke asked, anxiously.

Akura pointed towards a walkway within the dojo, "Head into the locker room, I found a uniform in there that just might fit you."

Keisuke went into the locker room and changed into his uniform which Akura had placed alongside a kendo stick. Keisuke emerged from the locker room to find an unusual site. There Akura stood, surrounded by twenty-five to thirty entry-level kendo students. They were all between the ages of eight and ten, and were all ready and dressed with their kendo sticks in hand. Keisuke looked back up at Akura, "What's going on?" He asked.

"Remember that thing I said about the grade school kendo class?" Akura asked back in response.

"Yeah, I thought you were just being an asshole." Keisuke replied.

Akura laughed, "There's a method to my madness Keisuke." He paused for a moment to take on a more serious tone, "Now, prepare yourself. For in order to conquer your enemy, you must first rise above all expectations!"

Keisuke's mouth gaped, unsure of what to make of the situation, "Uh... Akura, I don't know about thi-" He paused himself as Akura lifted his finger and pointed at him.

"Kids, that guy over there is your enemy. Exterminate him!" Akura ordered, prompting the class of children to charge at Keisuke with glowing ferocity.

Keisuke stood still, unguarded and with genuine confusion as he watched the stampede gain towards him. He finally snapped back into reality as the first child whacked him in the chins with his kendo sword. "Ow!" Keisuke cried as he hiked his leg from the floor, leaving him even less guarded than before. The rest of the children took advantage of this as they stormed on Keisuke with a barrage of attacks from their wooden sticks.

For the first few moments, Keisuke took the pint-sized beatings, unsure of how to handle them. "Akura! What am I supposed to do? These damn things hurt!"

"Fight em', Keisuke!" Akura shouted back from the sidelines.

"I can't, they're kids!" Keisuke replied, as he tried to cover himself from the overwhelming swarm of beatings.

"Well too bad! We need to get you trained in a hurry and this is the only thing I can think of!" Akura barked. "Now if you know what's good for you, you'll fight!"

Keisuke hesitated for a few moments until he finally took a blind swing.

**whack**

As that particular noise rang throughout the dojo, the attack suddenly halted. Keisuke opened his eyes as they wandered to the end of his kendo sword. Before him stood a young girl, no older than eight. Standing no taller than four feet, with large brown eyes that poked out of a small, but symmetrical face. Protruding across her face was a small, thin, red mark across her right cheek. Everyone in the room stood in a frozen silence as the little girl began to breathe heavily and tears began to drip down from both sides of her face. It all culminated when the tears began to shoot from her eyes, the sounds of her crying taking over the crowd.

Keisuke eyes shot open as he ran to the aid of the little girl, "Gah! I'm sorry little girl, please don't cry!" He panicked as he touched her shoulders, trying the comfort her. Keisuke pleas seemed to work as the little girl's tears began to recede and she began to calm, using a balled up fist to dry her eyes. The girl continued to dry her eyes for a few moments, before letting out a small grunt then using the same balled up fist to punch him in the groin.

"Ow!" Keisuke grunted as he was blindsided by the girls change in tone. His kendo stick dropped and he fell to the floor, once again prompting the rest of the kids to resume their attack.

"The enemy will go to any lengths to try and achieve victory, you must be prepared for anything, Keisuke!" Akura called out as Keisuke lay on the floor, mercilessly beaten.

_Over the course of the next week, Keisuke remained devoted to his training, only pausing to eat and sleep. _He continued to meet with Akura every morning and was restricted to a high protein diet despite everyone else thinking it unnecessary. He also made it a habit to work on his cardio by running alongside Daisuke every day, though he never really was able to make it past a mile and a half. At nights, Tenchi would teach him some of his grandfather's sword techniques. When everyone else was away, he'd keep himself busy by sweating to the oldies with Richard Simmons and hone his other swordsmanship skills using his Nintendo Wii and some samurai-based video game. Even Akura was impressed by Keisuke's gusto as Saturday morning came along and the training headed to a close.

Keisuke's form and technique had surprisingly improved greatly in the short amount of time he had. On that final morning before the duel, he faced off against his grade-school enemies with a newfound ferocity. He took out the first wave of his attackers with one single swipe of his sword, then immediately created an unbreakable defense against them as the second wave attempted to swarm around him. Those who stayed to fight were met with quick and powerful maneuvers that sent them flying in all directions. Those who ran met with similar fates as Keisuke chased them down, knocking them all into a neat pile one by one.

Keisuke laid down arms as he looked around the room at his fallen enemies. Most of wish were either unconscious or crying. Keisuke then noticed one of the boys who was attempting to crawl out from underneath the pile. Keisuke walked over to him as he was still trying to crawl away and stopped him by stepping on one of his hands, prompting a shrill, "Ah!" to come from the boy.

Standing before his fallen foes, Keisuke raised his weapon once again, pointing it to the ceiling, "I am the greatest warrior whoever lived!" He proclaimed at the top of his voice.

"Well, Keisuke, you really do have determination, don't you? I hate to say it, but I'm proud of you." Akura said as he walked over to Keisuke, trying not to step on any children.

"So do you think I might win this thing?" Keisuke asked, enthused.

Akura laughed, "Actually, I was kinda hoping you'd see my point by now... but hey, you just have to admire all that gusto." He replied in an almost nervous chuckle, then sighed. "Anyway... I gotta go get these kids patched up... you go ahead and take the rest of the day for... personal reflection." Akura said as he left into the locker rooms.

_Keisuke spent the rest of the day alone in his room. _Later that evening, he thought it'd be a good idea to try and meditate. Even though he wasn't really sure what he was doing, he remained seated on the floor in complete silence for at least two hours. As the clock struck midnight, Keisuke's eyes suddenly shot open as he gasped, "Good lord! I'm gonna die, aren't I?" He exclaimed to himself. He sat up all night on his computer chair, looking out the window in a worried gaze.

It was ten in the morning when Keisuke heard a knock on his door. "Come in." He said. Akura came into the room, leaving the door open as he ascended into the room. Keisuke's expression lightened up, not wanting to show the worry that had been haunting him all night long.

"Hey, Akura." Keisuke replied, solemnly.

"Big day, huh?" Akura asked.

Keisuke took a deep breath and shot up from his chair, despite not sleeping a wink, he appeared to be full of energy, "Sure is, that guy's gonna be here soon, what do you say we get going?" Keisuke said cheerfully.

Akura shot Keisuke a subtle eye of respect, "Glad to see you're in the zone. So, go ahead and get ready, everyone's waiting out back." He said. "Is your sword ready, does it need sharpening?"

Keisuke's expression suddenly turned worried and failed to reply.

Akura raised his eyebrow, "What's the matter?" He asked.

Keisuke hesitated to answer, he began to nervously twiddle his thumb, "Yeah... well, about that... See, I didn't want to tell you cause I knew you'd be mad..." He avoided eye-contact. 

"Oh no... what now?" Akura panicked.

Keisuke's eyes shifted back and forth, "It's just, the thing is... I don't really have my sword right now." Keisuke eased it in.

"What do you mean? If you don't have it, then who the hell does?" Akura asked.

Keisuke's eyes continued to shift, "Um... Yoshi's 24-Hour Pawn Stop on Fifth avenue..." He blurted out.

"You sold it!" The veins in Akura's head could now be seen quite clearly.

"No, no, no... I _pawned_ it. You see, they're gonna hold it for thirty days, by then the rent will be due and I can just buy it back!" Keisuke used a series of nervous hand gestures.

"Keisuke! You're supposed to duel this guy in five minutes and you don't have a weapon!" Akura exclaimed.

"Okay I know this sounds bad, but I've taken care of it." Keisuke tried to reason, "Just wait right there." He said as he went into his closet and pulled out a banjo, "Check it out, I got this sweet banjo for the trade, but that's not what I wanted to show you..." He set the banjo down on his bed, then went back into the closet and pulled out a long, thick, green box with the words 'Weed Eater' on it. He then quickly opened the box and pulled out a twenty-six inch, cordless hedge trimmer. "Look, I can fight him with this!" He proclaimed, as if he were expecting a sigh of relief..

Akura looked at Keisuke with his mouth gaped and his eyes fixed in a blank stare.

"You see, I got to thinking; swords are great and all, but they're kind of played out. I mean, everybody uses them. Now the guy who shows up to a duel sporting a hedge trimmer, he's gonna turn some heads. Not to mention the intimidation factor it's bound to have!" Keisuke tried his hardest to sell it.

Akura's veins were now pulsating, "That's not a weapon, Keisuke! Remember what happened the last time you tried to fight with one of those things?" Akura barked.

"Yeah, but that's when I was using my cheapy old electric one... This baby's a Weed Eater, fully gas powered, brand new in the box with the warranty still inside and everything! I mean, I didn't actually get the warranty cause I bought it at a pawn shop, but I figure a guarantee like that means this thing's gotta be heavy duty..." Keisuke rambled. "Plus this is the best we can do since you don't have your sword and I can't use Tenchi's..." He finished.

Akura rubbed his head, "I just don't understand why you would take your sword to a pawn shop when you knew this duel was coming." He whined.

"Well, actually, I sold it before I knew about the duel..." Keisuke replied.

"Wait a minute... so you're telling me you pawned your sword... a priceless family heirloom... and you didn't even have it for a day? Why would you do something so utterly... thoughtless?" Akura asked in disgust.

Keisuke hesitated to answer, "...Cause I really wanted the banjo..." He replied in a worried tone. The two stood in an awkward silence for a few moments, "See, this is why I didn't wanna tell you." Keisuke said as he noticed a twitchy brow. Akura didn't respond.

"C'mon... things aren't so bad." Keisuke spoke in a more concerning tone.

Akura picked his head back up and glared atKeisuke, "Aren't so bad? How could they get any worse?" He replied.

"Hey, I don't see why you're so upset about this! I'm the one who has to fight this guy and you know you could have stopped me, so why didn't you?" Keisuke spoke in a more defensive tone.

Akura sighed, "Because I won't always be there to fix your mistakes, Keisuke! I was hoping this time you would have finally come to your senses. Sure, I was proud that you stuck to your guns, but pride is nothing without some incentive!" Keisuke was taken aback. "Ever since I've met you, it's been nothing but stupidity and excuses from you and when you finally start to earn my respect, you go and screw that up too." Akura continued "It sickens me... the thought of you one day being the successor of my Emperor!" He finished for the final time.

They stood there once again in an awkward silence, Akura with his head held in his hand and Keisuke looking over at him with a blank expression. After a few moments, he lit up again with a smile, "You know what you need?" He said in a spritely tone, still thinking he had a shot on cheering things up, then set down the hedge trimmer and picked up his banjo, "I tell you, this thing's the sound of sunshine. Here, let me play you this song I wrote..." He holstered the instrument then pulled a few strings.

Akura snatched the banjo from Keisuke's hand and threw it out the window.

Keisuke shot Akura a dirty look, "Oh yeah, that solved everything, now we don't have a sword or a banjo!" He barked.

Akura ignored Keisuke's words then began to make his way out of the room. "Just hurry up so we can get this over with... maybe Gennisant will be better off..." He grumbled as he made his exit.

_Harohatsu arrived a little past ten to a crowd of the entire household. _He leaned against the tree in the backyard, taking refuge in the shade.

Akura arrived through the back sliding glass door, staring at the ground in a solemn gaze.

"So where's Keisuke? We wanna see a fight over here!" Junichi asked.

"Yeah, and I got a makeup test at eleven, so he needs to hurry his ass up!" Ryoko concurred.

Without replying, Akura walked past the crowd and stood near the back fence. The crowd looked on, wondering what he might be upset about.

Keisuke finally came outside through the sliding glass door, hedge trimmer in hand. Everyone watched as he made his way to the end of the patio.

Harohatsu stood from leaning and looked Keisuke in the eyes. "Look who finally decided to show up, you ready to do this thing?" Harohatsu asked, confident as ever.

Keisuke took a deep breath, "I think I need to sit down for a moment..." He said as he fell backwards.

Daisuke and Akura rushed to his aid, Daisuke pushing a lawn chair underneath him to catch his fall. Immediately, Daiske began massaging Keisuke's shoulders, like a trainer would do for his boxer in the ring. "C'mon, Keisuke, don't back down, everyone's gonna say you're a wuss." Daisuke urged.

Akura stared at Keisuke, "Well, Keisuke? What's it gonna be? It's not too late." He asked.

Keisuke took a couple of deep breaths, then shot Akura a look, "Not a chance..." He said and fixed himself to a more confident posture.

Akura sighed, turned away and went back to his spot against the fence.

Daisuke continued to rub Keisuke's shoulders, "Alright, Keisuke, this is your moment, we're all rooting for you. Don't listen to Akura, you can win, you just gotta believe." He prepped the fighter.

Keisuke took one last breath, then stood up. "Thanks Daisuke, I really appreciate all the help you've given me."

"No sweat, pal." Daisuke patted Keisuke on the back, "Go get him!" He parted with those words then walked over to the rest of the crowd, who were all in a huddle. "Okay, so I got a hundred-thousand yen that says Keisuke's done for in a minute." He whispered.

"A whole minute?" Ryoko scoffed, "Thirty seconds, tops."

"Well, put me down for forty-five seconds, that's a lot of fat to cut through." Maiya joined in.

"Now, wait, are we counting for when the fight's over, or when he's actually dead?" Ayeka asked.

"Hello? Anyone here?" A voice came from around the corner of the house as Katsuhito came into the yard through the back fence. Everyone looked over.

"Hey Grandpa, what a surprise!" Tenchi said.

Katsuhito approached the group, "Well, I was just heading back from Kyoto when I thought I'd stop by and see how things were going. I understand Keisuke's gotten himself into a bit of trouble while I was gone." He said.

"Yup. We gotta pool going, by the way, you want in?" Washu asked.

Katsuhito scratched his chin, "Well, I've never really been the gambling type, what are the stakes, might I ask?"

"Let's see, so far the odds are zero for Keisuke to Harohatsu's one. Simplified, of course." Washu replied.

Katsuhito scratched his chin some more, "Then... what's the point if you all supposedly know the outcome?"

"We're putting money down to see how long it takes. Unfortunately, most of the good time slots are already taken." Washu said then showed Katsuhito the clipboard and paper which she was using to keep track of the bets.

Katsuhito examined the board, "Well, looks like you've got a full house... Seems to me I might as well put my money on Keisuke." He said.

Washu laughed, "Good one, Katsuhito... now we've got open slots in the in the high forties and low fifties, but you'd have to split the winnings with Maiya..." She said said as she raised her pen to the clipboard.

"Actually, I think I'll do that..." Katsuhito replied.

"Okay-" Washu prepared to strike with her pen before she was interrupted.

"I think I'll put my money on Keisuke winning the duel." Katsuhito finished with a smile.

The group looked at Katsuhito like he was crazy. "You're taking the joke a little far, don't you think?" Ryoko asked.

Katsuhito reached into his pocket and threw some cash at Washu, "I might stand to lose a little in order to gain a lot. Plus, I figure in an infinite universe, anything's possible."

The group continued to stare blankly at Katsuhito as he smiled back, "Well, it can't be _that_ infinite..." Maiya replied.

"Quiet, he's coming this way." Kiyone urged.

Keisuke came walking past the group in an unusually gloomy slouch, even for him. He didn't speak.

"Good morning, Keisuke, looks to be a fine day, huh?" Katsuhito said in a cheerful tone.

"Yeah..." Keisuke hastily responded.

"Good luck, out there." Katsuhito then said.

"Thanks..." Keisuke replied in the same monotone voice.

"What's he so down in the dumps about? He was super excited all week." Ryoko asked.

"Maybe the alcohol finally wore off." Washu replied.

"So none of you tried to talk him out this?" Katsuhito asked the group.

"It's not that we didn't try... we just didn't put forth the appropriate effort, is all." Washu replied.

Katsuhito sighed though his nose and shook his head, then walked over to Akura who remained standing slouched, looking at the ground. "I can't believe you're actually letting him do this." Katsuhito said.

"If you think your luck might be any better, then be my guest." Akura replied.

"I barely know the boy, if he didn't listen to you, certainly there's nothing I can do." Katsuhito said.

"That's not true, you always knew how to talk to me." Akura said in a regretful tone.

Katsuhito thought it best not to press on with the conversation as he focused his attention on the main attraction. But couldn't help but notice one thing, his eyes shifted back between Keisuke and Akura, "So, what's with the hedge trimmer?" He asked.

"Don't ask." Akura abruptly responded.

"So are you finally ready to do this?" Harohatsu asked in his ever confident tone.

Keisuke took one last look at his enemy. Taken by the moment and an oath to himself, Keisuke took on a more confident posture. He scowled at Harohatsu, "Yeah, let's go..." He said quietly.

Harohatsu seemed to be in no rush as he noticed Keisuke's hedge trimmer, "I see you brought your 'weapon' again." He scoffed, "Are you really that stupid?"

Keisuke tried to remain cool to the situation, "That was my electric one, asshole. This baby's gonna tear your sorry ass to pieces. I would've used it the other day... but I forgot to pick up gas." And failed. "I'm sorry, I really suck at this." He sighed.

Harohatsu scoffed, then pointed his sword at Keisuke, "Get ready." He said.

Keisuke charged up his weapon's motor.

"Starting the clock..." Washu announced as she started the official stopwatch.

Harohatsu gripped his sword and got into fighting stance, as did Keisuke. "I'm gonna cut you up like the little piggy you are." Harohatsu said as he lunged towards Keisuke and swung his blade.

Keisuke's expression turned to startled amazement, "Jesus... Where do you get those neat one-liners?" A fatal mistake as his mind wandering cause him to completely miss Harohatsu's move. Not noticing until the last second, Keisuke attempted to block but was far too late as he found himself at the mercy of Harohatsu's blade; the tip pausing mere inches from his throat. Keisuke's weapon had barely budged.

Everyone gasped, expecting this to be the end of Keisuke. Akura looked up with fearful anticipation.

"Woo! Fifteen seconds, baby!" Denise cheered and jumped in the background.

Keisuke remained frozen at Harohatsu's mercy for a few more seconds. He perspired as Harohatsu stared into his eyes with his evil grin that had become signature.

"What the hell's he doing?" Denise exclaimed. "Hurry up and finish him!" She shouted to Harohatsu.

The two remained staring into each other's faces, until Harohatsu let out a sudden snicker, before slicing his blade upward, sending splashes of blood into the air. Keisuke grabbed onto his face, still holding onto the hedge trimmer in his other hand as he stumbled backwards "Gah! Mother fucker!" He screamed. Harohatsu stood back, crossing his arms in an unassuming pose as he watched Keisuke flail around in pain. Keisuke finally removed his hand from his face revealing a large gash across his left cheek.

"Don't think I'm done with you yet, piggy. I wanna have a little fun first." Harohatsu said.

The crowd gasped in horror, yet again. "Oh no!" Junichi exclaimed.

"He's gonna torture Keisuke!" Kiyone concurred in horror.

"Washu! Quick! I wanna change my bet!" Ryoko urged, prompting everyone else to rabble.

"Now, now, calm down people." Washu tried to calm the fray, "In light of recent developments, everyone will be allowed to extend their times... but me first!"

Keisuke wiped the blood and sweat from his eyes, "Okay, not such a good start..." He said to himself.

"Oh, get up, I've barely even touched you yet!" Harohatsu demanded.

Keisuke struggled a bit to regain his posture. The blood from his cut seeped over to the corner of his eye. Finally he retook hold of his weapon and assumed his battle stance.

Harohatsu studied his stance, "I see you're attempting use Juraian maneuvers, how cute. Just remember, no amount of training is going to help a fat, worthless idiot like you." He sniped.

Keisuke scowled at Harohatsu, "Okay, man, that's been bothering me this whole time... now I'll take the fat insults, but why do you continue to insult my intelligence when you don't know me?" He asked, angrily.

"Maybe it's because you brought a hedge trimmer to a sword fight!" Harohatsu replied.

"Well, actually there's quite a story to that... you see, I had my sword the night before you cut my arm off-"

Harohatsu rolled his eyes as Keisuke rambled. When he had finally had enough, he leaped back into combat, lightly piercing Keisuke's thigh, just above the knee. Keisuke grabbed onto his leg in a shout of pain, "Okay, so maybe we should set some boundaries, cause... you gotta look at it from my perspective... I'm trying to make a memorable exit here, and you can't just-" Keisuke rambled as he hopped around comically one his other leg.

Akura and Katsuhito still remained standing in the background. Akura couldn't bring himself to watch the spectacle, whilst Katsuhito seemed to be the opposite, studying every move of the fight, "Who knows, maybe Keisuke will annoy him to death..." Katsuhito tried to stay optimistic.

The clock on Washu's timer was at 3:15 and moving forward.

By this time, Keisuke was on the floor groaning in pain, "Ow! Ow! It hurts, it hurts." He dramatically whined, "So, uh... what do you say we call it quits? You've humiliated me in front of all my friends, you proved you're way tougher than me... job well done, right? You know, I really only wanted to do this so I could prove I wasn't a wuss." Keisuke nervously explained.

Harohatsu brushed his hair back and scoffed, "You moron, humiliating you was just perk... I told you, I'm here to kill you. Now get up and fight or I'm gonna stab your balls."

Keisuke leaped to his feet and got back into fighting position, despite the injuries. "Okay, let's get back to it." He said hastily.

Harohatsu picked back up his guard, "Your move, piggy." He said.

Keisuke took a deep breath, then charged at Harohatsu, swinging for his pelvis in a most brutish manner. Harohatsu limboed under the blade of Keisuke's hedge trimmer and simultaneously sent back a counter-attack by slicing his blade across Keisuke's calf, causing him to stumble into the tree.

"I'm surprised he hasn't nipped himself at all, yet." Ryoko postulated.

"It's only a matter of time, Ryoko." Washu replied.

Maiya, who had temporarily been absent from the group, came out of the house through the back door carrying a bowl of popcorn, "Is it still going on?" Maiya asked as she closed the door behind her.

"Yeah, this Harohatsu guy's a real nutcase." Kiyone replied.

"He must really have a terrible home life or something." Sasami concurred, followed with a monotonous "Meow." from Ryo-Ohki.

The fight went on mostly the same for the next few minutes; Keisuke would try to attack, to no avail, as Harohatsu would dodge and counter. The blood loss caused Keisuke to become weaker by the second, as his swings became weaker and sloppier, he began to breath heavy and lose control of his facial muscles. Harohatsu stood back in order to taunt Keisuke some more, "Don't tell me you're through yet, I thought we were just getting started."

Despite his condition, Keisuke was able to force on one more war-face as he charged at Harohatsu, swinging back and forth with all the techniques he had learned, but to no avail as Harohatsu continued to out-maneuver him in every aspect. After about ten seconds of this, Harohatsu finally decided he wanted to get another lick in. This time going for Keisuke's ear, slicing the top in half.

Akura winced at the site, even Katsuhito's normal humbleness was now nowhere to be seen.

Keisuke fell to the ground on his stomach, the motor of his hedge trimmer came to a sudden halt...

"Hurray! I win the pool!" Ayeka shouted. Everyone looked back at her with disapproving stares, prompting her to simmer down in mourning, "Poor, Keisuke, though..." She said, then began to silently pray for him along with the others.

The light faded for Keisuke, though his eyes remained open. Visions of his experience passed through his mind at speeds of light. In between these familiar visions were that of a shining light. One image after another passed him by until they faded into the singular light. Suddenly he felt himself floating towards the light, though he did not see himself in the physical sense, but rather like watching himself in a dream. The light shined brightly almost to the point of blindness, though all that surrounded him was a vast empty blackness. A faint voice came in through the background, though the voice was not heard rather than felt by Keisuke throughout his entire being. The voice it spoke in was female, though it had no gender. It's language was alien to Keisuke, though he understood it perfectly... it said "I have not used you yet."

Keisuke stared back into the light, blankly. The pain, the suffering he had felt was suddenly replaced with a feeling of a non-physical existence, though he was aware of his body. And though he could not speak, he communicated with the light, "No. I will use you."

Keisuke's pupils shrunk as he opened his eyes to the sunlight. In one single motion, he shot back to his feet and pulled the cord to his trusty hedge trimmer.

The crowd gasped. Even Akura now looked over to the fight in disbelief.

Keisuke stood before his opponent with a fixed stare.

Harohatsu remained unworried, "We thought we'd lost you for a second, there. Good to see you're back up and ready for another ass whoopin'."

Without responding, Keisuke resumed his battle stance.

Harohatsu raised his eyebrows cheerfully, "Well, look at that, in a hurry are we?" Harohatsu asked as he walked nonchalantly over to Keisuke. He finally quit his approach when he found himself no more than four steps from Keisuke, who was still standing his ground. Harohatsu laughed one last and raised his blade to strike. "Let me help you out, then. There's no need to strain yourself!" He exclaimed as he swung his blade at Keisuke.

A crash rang throughout the yard as everyone was amazed to see Keisuke blocking a head-on strike from Harohatso's blade. Harohatsu jumped back, his confident fixture now erased for the first time in this fight.

"He... blocked it!" Tenchi said with amazement.

"I don't believe it!" Akura exclaimed from his end of the yard.

Harohatsu's face began to twitch, though he held back showing his true concern, "Well, looks the pig's got some bite, after all. You weren't holding out on me this whole time, were you?" He asked, rhetorically, then scoffed. "No matter, you may have gotten lucky, but let's see how you fair when I stop playing AROUND!" He lunged again at Keisuke, who, in turn, blocked it again, seemingly flawless.

"Twice?" The group simultaneously exclaimed.

Harohatsu stood back for a few minutes, realizing he was now in a new game. He stood studying his opponent for a few moments, noticably dismayed. Keisuke noticed Harohatsu's weakness, prompting him to finally break his serious exterior and cracked a smile at him. "What's the matter, boy? You were so much stronger than me earlier, what happened?" Keisuke taunted.

"What did you... call me?" Harohatsu grew very furious, "I'm not gonna take that from some fat loser like you!" He exclaimed before lunging at Keisuke again with all his ferocity.

The crowd stared as Harohatsu's assault was met with an impressive defense from Keisuke. "Wow, Keisuke might actually win this thing!" Daisuke said excitedly.

"Come on, Keisuke, you can do it!" Sasami cheered from the sidelines.

"Yeah! Go Keisuke!" Maiya even joined in.

Soon Keisuke could hear a flurry of cheers and support coming his way as he continued to block Harohatsu's every single strike. As he grew angrier, Harohatsu would strike at Keisuke harder and more loosely.

Akura gripped his fists in anticipation, "C'mon, Keisuke... c'mon..." He whispered to himself.

Harohatsu continued his assault on Keisuke without rest, when suddenly he attempted to place an upward strike. Keisuke went to block, throwing his hedge trimmer blade down against the attack. As the two blades, a loud, thunderous crack was heard as the blades on Keisuke's hedge trimmer finally broke off, separating into two pieces and flying high into the sky.

Akura brought his palm to his face with an audible smacking sound.

Keisuke immediately dropped the remains of his 'weapon' and fell onto his knees, then back onto the floor. As he looked up to the sky, he saw nothing but clouds and Harohatsu's signature grin, once again. He chuckled nervously for a second,"You kinda had me worried there for a second..." He said wiping his nose, then raising his blade for the last time. "Guess it's time we end this... Good night, sweet prince." Harohatsu said as he prepared to stab his blade down on Keisuke.

Keisuke continued to look up in the sky, time slowed down and his body felt peaceful, yet again. As his eyes frantically wandered, they were caught by some flickering objects coming down from the sky. He tried to study them, but the suns blinding light made it nearly impossible to make it out.

Harhatsu moved in closer for the kill. He now stood over Keisuke with his sword raised and the tip aimed for Keisuke's heart. As he studied the fear in his victims eyes, he suddenly noticed a sharp, terrible pain enter the back of his neck, followed immediately by another sharp pain in his back which in turn assumed to shut off all feeling throughout his body.

The crowd looked on in disbelief and speechless, as the witnessed the site of Harohatsu with two hedge trimmer blades sticking out of his spine and neck.

Harohatsu looked down at Keisuke, with own disbelief, "...You fat son of-" He lost his sense of speech.

The thrill of his realization sent Keisuke into a fit of laughter, despite his numerous injuries. The sound of his laughter sent the crowd into a fit of confusion.

One by one, Harohatsu's senses began to shut down until he finally fell with his blade still pointed downward.

"Gasp!" Keisuke's laughter halted as the tip of the blade fell forwards, seemingly headed for his torso. His eyes slammed shut in a wince and remained so for several seconds until he realized he was still alive. He inched his eyes back open to see Harohatsu's lifeless body laying on top of him, with the sword pierced through his shoulder. Keisuke let out a sigh of relief, "That's not so bad..."

"You did it Keisuke!" Sasami cheered then rushed over to him with the rest of the crowd.

They all worked to throw Harohatsu's body off and help Keisuke to his feet. Tenchi held onto the blade still piercing his shoulder to keep it in place. What followed was a showering of praise from all around.

"Great job, Keisuke!" Tenchi saluted.

"Well, you cost us all money, but we couldn't be prouder of you!" Washu patted him on the back.

"I knew you could do it, buddy! Didn't I tell you you could do it?" Daisuke said.

Akura and Katsuhito approached the crowd. Keisuke looked at Akura. "Well, kid, you got lucky, but hey, maybe that's your real power." Akura smiled the first genuine smile Keisuke had seen up to that point.

"I don't know, I talk about an infinite universe, but even I have a hard time believing this was only luck." Katsuhito scratched his beard. "Speaking of which, I hope I'll be receiving my earnings in cash." Katsuhito said to Washu.

"Well, I don't know how he did it, but the important thing is that he did it. Maybe you will have what it takes to be Emperor someday." Akura replied.

"Let's hear it for Keisuke! Hip, hip, hurray!" Junichi started a cheer.

The crowd cheered Keisuke's praises before Tenchi noticed him trying to speak. "Hey, quiet everyone. He wants to say something!" Tenchi urged. "Go ahead, Keisuke."

The crowd went silent, "I need to go to the-" Keisuke paused as he had to swallow some blood that was seeping out through his mouth, "Hospital... you guys." It took every inch of his strength to get it out.

"Oh yeah, right..." Ryoko said with sudden realization.

"C'mon, let's get him inside." Akura said as he went to open the back door.

And so, Keisuke took his first step into becoming a great warrior. This small victory would mean he'd finally succeeded in gaining the respect of those he was forced to share a roof with... at least for the time being and that was good enough for him.

_The residents of Sigma House buried Harohatsu's body later that day. _They marked it with a simple wooden headstone next to Speckles the Dog. After everyone had gone to bed, something peculiar came digging its way out from underneath the headstone. They looked to be four tiny mechanical spiders that, once unearthed, made their way into the house and spread apart. The first spider attempted to enter Washu's lab, but was blocked by some sort of shield that deemed the tiny mechanisms as unauthorized personal. "Damn. That Washu's a tricky girl." Satoshi said as he watched multiple monitors displaying the sights of his machines. "No matter, my little friend should be able to obtain the information I need..." He said as he took a drink of sake, "This one's for you, Harohatsu, you've served your purpose..."


End file.
